The Dangerous Innocent
by Chinry
Summary: Set fourteen years in the future, Shadow must face his past actions to protect the future of both himself and his son. A bloodline can be a dangerous thing to follow.
1. Prologue: Signs

_Hi, welcome to chapter one of my new story. I'm trying something new, for me anyway, as I've never had an O.C in the Sonic universe before. Both introduced here, I'm not sure how far this story will go, but I've started writing so I may as well post. Let me know what you think._

 _Sonic, Shadow and Amy belong to the Sega Team_

 _Nula and Brant are my babies. Well, not literally._

* * *

Amy marveled at the little bundle resting on her knee. His fur was such a deep hue of blue, with an almost an iridescent purple shimmer as he squirmed in the sunlight. She tickled his little tan belly and he squeaked in delight, tiny hands grabbing on to her finger and holding tight. With her other hand she held him securely in place, the spines on his back still soft and flat to his back.

Nula came and sat by her mother. In her hand she held her beloved stuffed bunny Patches, a gift from Auntie Sticks. It was handmade, and more Frankenstein's Monster than soft toy, but Nula adored it. Now she was nearing five years old, she didn't carry Patches around with her but he stayed in her bed. So when she plonked him in front of the baby on her lap, Amy had to hold back a tear. Her daughter was such a pure hearted creature.

"He doesn't cry lots," Nula observed in her quietest voice. She seemed to think that speaking to loud would scare the baby.

"No, he is very placid."

"Pacid?"

"Placid, Nula, it means he is very calm."

The little lilac hedgehog scrunched her nose, "But babies cry lots"

Amy prized her finger out of the little ones grip and lay it gently on her daughters cheek. Big green eyes looked innocently up at her, but out of the mouths of babes came the truth. He was a very quiet baby, making the softest cooing sounds as he took a hold of Patches ears.

"Well he likes you a lot Nula. He doesn't need to cry because you keep making him happy."

The little girl seemed satisfied with this and she stroked his head carefully. She was fascinated by the lone streak of red that ran from his forehead and right through to the end of his quills. That crimson mark and his bright red eyes stood him out from everyone else. There was only one other creature that had such markings, and everyone knew him. It would be difficult to hide the little ones genetic line.

One of Nulas ears pricked up and she suddenly bolted from the room. Ever since she could walk she had been moving too fast, and she had only just stopped running in to the wall. She wasn't always so clumsy, but her sixth sense reaction could only mean her Father was home. As Amy heard the door open and Nula squeal with delight, she lay the baby back in his basket. He didn't make a sound, but took one of Patches ears in his tiny mouth.

"I think she's getting quicker," Amy called out, "wonder where she's got that from."

Sonic walked in to the room, Nula tucked under one of his arms. It was a game they would play, where he would come in and ask where his daughter was while she cried with laughter from under his arm. Today he looked weary, and after giving his daughter one last tickle he set her down. She ran straight over to the basket to play with the baby.

Amy walked over to her husband, embracing him tightly. Some days she would gladly see the back of him, but most of the time she felt a little part of her was missing when he was away. At least now she had Nula to keep her loneliness at bay on the occasions he was away for a while. Since he had become a Dad he had tried to keep his longer adventures on hold. He was a hero to all, so that wasn't always possible.

"Hey Ames, how has he been?" Sonic asked, with a small amount of resistance in his voice.

Amy pulled away and smiled at him, "You wouldn't even know he was in the room most of the time. Silent as a shad..."

"Don't say it Amy. Don't say his name," he interrupted, quietly but sternly.

Amy frowned, but nodded lightly. That name, that word, had been banned since the baby had come in to their lives. It wasn't the babies fault, and Sonic was doing his best to be patient, but as days had become weeks he was letting his anger show.

"I take it you've had no luck?"

"Oh trust me, when I find him I'll be dragging him here by his ears," Sonic said, trying not to growl in front of his daughter. "How about you? Any leads from the hospital?"

Amy shook her head, "Rouge managed to infiltrate their databases, but all the records lead to both parents signing the relevant forms. No single Mothers. Obviously she already exhausted the possibility his name might show up "

"He might have been there for all we know, false name. Ran off once it got too much."

Amy grabbed him by the elbow and pulled him in to their bedroom, shutting the door carefully behind her so as not to alarm the children.

"We've been through this. I know he hasn't got the best history but he would not abandon his own son," she snapped.

"How do you know for sure? Why did we end up with Shadow Junior on our doorstep?" Sonic replied just as sharply. Through the years they had been together they had never perfected keeping their tempers at bay. Especially over matters involving Shadow.

"You're Sonic the Hedgehog, you idiot," she croaked, trying to keep her angry voice low, "you save lives. Half the damn world knows about you, and most of them know you're a Dad. It's not beyond realms of imagination that some poor soul thought you would be a good person to leave their baby with."

He folded his arm and took a deep breath, about to head in to the danger zone.

"Is it not also beyond the realms of imagination to think you're defending Shadow because of your history with him?"

Amy balled her hands in to fists and clenched her jaw tight. She could have torn him in two there and then, but she had to keep her temper down.

"That was over ten years ago Sonic! You and I, we're a family now. We have a child! Tell me in your heart of hearts you can picture him giving up his own son like that, knowing how you would do anything for your daughter."

At that moment Nula came in looking forlorn. Sonic was quick to scoop her up and hug her tightly. Amy caught his eye but they didn't need to say anything else.

"Hey shooting star," Sonic breathed, rubbing the little ones back, "what's that face for?"

She sniffed, tears forming in her emerald eyes, the exact colour of her Fathers.

"Brant broke Patches."

Amy walked over and pushed the purple quills out of her child's face, "Brant? Who's that sweetie?"

"The baby."

Sonic tilted his head and smiled, "Brant? Is that what you want to call him?"

She looked back and forth between her parents, "That's his name."

Amy smiled, "Who called him that?"

The little girl suddenly looked very sheepish. She squirmed out of Sonics grip and disappeared. They both followed her in to the living room, where Nula popped out from under the sofa with a piece of paper in her hand.

"This was in the basket. I took it and drew on it I sorry," she babbled quickly, tears forming in her little eyes. Amy took the paper off her daughter while calmly shushing her. As Sonic soothed Nula, Amy opened up the folded sheet. Underneath her daughters doodle of a flower, in very ornate writing, were a few simple words.

 _'This is Brant. I cannot care for him any longer. Find his father, he is the only one who will be able to handle this nightmare'_

"I try to read all the words like Mummy but it too hard. I practice now I read Brant."

Nula was an advanced reader for her age but of all words to pick out she had read a name she would never have seen before. Amy looked over to the wicker basket where the baby lay. He remained just as calm and as quiet as the day he was left on their doorstep, but hanging from his little canines was the head of poor Patches.


	2. Prologue: Early Bonds

_I'm trying to take the time to plot this story carefully. Though these initial chapters are more based in the Boom universe, I will be bringing in the comics as well, and there are over 200 of those to pay attention to. For now we are still in semi prologue mode so I'm not going deep in to passed events. The following is set a couple of years before the main bulk story._

 _Boom Shadow is too underdeveloped as a character. Nula is born when Amy is 23, so roughly 7-10 years after their most canon encounter with Shadow (I know they say Amy is 12 in Boom, but I would say she's more like 15)._

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega._

* * *

Sonic and Amy were, mostly, average parents. Amy had given up heroics the day she had found out about her pregnancy. It wasn't an easy change to adapt to but she wasn't going to risk the life growing inside her. She had used her knowledge of the Ancients to get a job as a translator. Able to work from home she would decipher the texts others were discovering. She longed to be in the field, and once Nula was old enough she knew she could be. Until that day, she was Mother, wife and linguist.

Sonic enjoyed his battles with Eggman. Once Nula graced the world with her presence he stopped toying with the Doctor. Though, for a while anyway, Eggman ceased his attacks on the village in favour of developing toys for the hoglet. They were mostly useless, or dangerous, but he was quietly besotted with the wide eyed wonder and didn't want her to come to any harm.

Though Amy spent all day with her daughter, she was also the disciplinarian and so Nula was more enamoured with her Father. Sonic literally did laps around the island the day that Nula managed her first spin, and was taking her out for their own little races in no time. Her little legs hadn't quite got to grips with her speed and she often tumbled, but Sonic was always there to pick her back up.

Then one day they realised the dangers of their child's lack of control. Not so average parents had a not so average girl. They still bickered, but with adulthood came responsibilities neither of them liked and Amy's temper at being stuck inside would lead to some major arguments. They were never about anything drastic but voices would raise until one of them stormed out. On this particular day they were fighting in the kitchen and neither noticed the front door wide open until it was too late. Nula had got upset, and she'd bolted.

"Where would she go? She's only three!" Amy cried, running out the front door to check their surroundings.

"Well where do you take her during the day?" Sonic replied, looking for signs of footprints n the dust.

"If you were around more you would know!"

"This isn't the time for this!"

Amy sucked in a breath and tears began to form. As Sonic saw her shaking he took hold of her shoulders and looked her in the eye.

"Ames calm down. Even at speed she can't have got far, and she isn't nearly as quick as me yet. She'll probably go somewhere she knows right?"

Her eyes had begun to stream but she nodded, "Yes, yes of course. Erm, well we visit those three enough. The library perhaps. The midwife...she lives beyond the valley but Nula doesn't like her."

Sonic dashed, calling behind him for Amy to stay put in case Nula came right home. He didn't dare tell her that he had done the same thing when he was little, and that he had ended up in the middle of nowhere. He had hoped that Nula would be more aware that her legs would go before her brain told them to. But she was still so young.

Nula liked Sticks a lot, so he tried there first. He had no time to be polite, so he burst in to her burrow. It was empty so he tried both Tails and Knuckles with only a brief yell to each of them as to what was going on. Tails said he would take Tornado out to try and get an aerial view while Knuckles vowed to find Sticks and rope her in to the hunt.

He could feel the panic begin to swell in his heart. His daughter was his entire world and to think she was out there, scared and alone all because he and Amy had had another stupid fight was almost more than he could take. He called for her over and over, looking for signs of tracks in the dirt or her distinct lilac blur. She was nervous of the woods, so even in blind panic he doubted she would head there, so he made for the canyon which was their favourite place to run.

"Nula! Campanula! Hey, where's my shooting star?" he called out, using the rocks around him to bounce his voice far and wide. His communicator beeped but he didn't have time to answer. He could hear the Tornado fly overhead. Tails would have the highest view, but Nula was so little that if she'd hidden herself she wouldn't be seen from the sky.

Eggman! He had spybots! He could send them out and look for her on the ground level too! Why hadn't he thought about that yet? As fast as he could he made for the beach when a massive boulder fell in front of him. He skidded to a halt, missing it by inches. It was blocking his path and he was furious. Then came a deep voice he knew all too well.

"Still as slow as a panther I see."

Sonic growled, "Shadow I really don't have the time to..."

As Sonic turned round to face his old foe his eyes caught sight of a small lilac ball. Snuggled asleep in the snowy fur of Shadows chest was Nula. She looked unharmed. Sonic didn't even register his movements, but his precious child was soon bundled in his arms.

"That's not the kind of thing you want to misplace," Shadow sighed, crossing his arms impatiently.

Sonic glared at him, but not wanting to scare her again he held his temper in place.

"What are you doing with her?"

Shadow frowned deeply, "I was running through here when she stumbled in to view. Her legs couldn't cope with the speed she was going at and she dropped like a stone. I'm not in the habit of picking up lost children. What are you doing letting her run off like that?"

Sonic was struggling to hold himself, but the sweet smell of Nulas fur was soothing the beast inside.

"She was...just playing, like kids do. She can't seem to control herself yet. She just...ran."

Shadow looked them both up and down before turning away. As he walked away he called back to them without looking around.

"Precious commodity you've got there. Don't let her become as big a fool as you."

* * *

They didn't see Shadow often after that, but Nula didn't forget him in a hurry. In her broken sentences she explained that they had gone 'up in the sky' to look for Daddy but that she had fallen asleep because she was 'very very asleepy'. She hadn't been gone for that long, she had just burnt herself out. For some weeks she was scared to run but her curious little mind wouldn't sit still and neither would her legs.

It was Nula who found Brant. She had prized one of Sonics eyelids open to tell him there was a baby on the doorstep. He had grumbled a reply about not leaving her toys outside, so she had tried her luck with her Mother instead. Amy was an early riser, but the sun hadn't risen and Nula still hadn't grasped that she was not to be out of bed before daylight.

So Nula had carried him in, no mean feat when she was still a dot herself. The moment he gurgled both her prostrate parents had shot through the roof. Sonic was out the door and scanning the area for the parents in a blink, while Amy bundled the midnight coloured baby in a blanket and set about getting him some warm almond milk. Nula had dragged in the basket, and it must have been at that time she found the note and decided it was hers to doodle on. She had often ruined one of Amy's papers that way.

"You have got to be kidding me!" were Sonics first words when he got a good look at the baby. There really was no question of of his family line with the red streak running though his soft spines. Knowing who the Father was only half the battle, and since that morning they hadn't even been able to find him.

Nearly two months had passed and they had exhausted every avenue they could think of. Rouge had been told of the child existence as she was key in the hunt for Shadow, and of course Sticks, Tails and Knuckles knew, but otherwise they had kept him secret. Even little Nula seemed to understand the importance of not telling anyone and she hadn't spilled to anyone at her toddler group.

The letter had put a further rift between Sonic and Amy. It wasn't that Sonic believed Brant would intentionally harm anyone, but the incident with Patches had been a wake up call that this hoglet was more than what he seemed. Sonic had forbidden Amy to leave Nula alone with Brant, but Amy was not going to have the baby ostracised like that.

"We don't know who wrote the letter Sonic, or why, but that baby isn't a threat to anyone!"

"How can you say that? Sure he may not realise he's dangerous but it explains how we got lumbered with him."

"Lumbered? Is that what you think a child is? Something you're lumbered with"

"Don't twist my words Amy, you know what I meant."

"He can't control his powers, just like Nula."

The little hoglet had been feeling very guilty, but upon hearing her name it all got too much for her again. She had seen a piece of paper with some squiggles on it and she had taken it for herself. Mummy had been angry when she had done that before, but she really liked to draw. Now she had found that word in the squiggles she wanted to admit what she had done. Brant, she had practiced saying it until she was sure it was right but her parents were still angry and it must have been with her. Her little legs began to twitch but she knew she shouldn't run again or she would get lost like last time. The black hedgehog who looked like a grumpy version of her Daddy might not be there this time.

But then, something switched on inside her. She wanted to run, but she wanted to run...somewhere. Quiet as the breeze she slipped outside the unlocked door, and let her legs guide her.


	3. The Little Escapee

_Hello again, sorry this update has been a long time coming. I have been working on a few other fictions, but mostly on my prequel to this, "Internal Combustion". Towards the end of this chapter there is a reference to the scene I have just posted in that story, so I couldn't post that here until I had on there._

 _These chapters are short for now, but they should hopefully increase as the story gains momentum. Hopefully questions that are raised now will be answered, some soon and some much later as is keeping with the storyline_

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega_

 _Brant and Nula belong to me_

* * *

Shadow landed with a thump, growling with pain as he jolted the deep wound in his shoulder. He had lost a lot of blood, and that Chaos Control had drained what little energy he did have. He was in the cave he knew all too well though, the glowing runes giving a soft light, and he was able to examine his injury at last. There was so much he could fight off, but even he couldn't stop the damage a blade could inflict. There were not many creatures who could sneak up on him, but this adversary had been something else.

He sat there, considering his options. His communication device had been lost when he was captured, and he couldn't get far with the blood loss he had suffered. There was no reason for anyone to pass this way, and even if they did he was buried deep in the cave where he could not be seen. As his vision begun to blur he wondered if this was finally the end after so many years fighting his own mortality. To go out so pitifully, was that poetic justice for all the wars he caused caused and fought in?

Then she arrived; a tiny, curious angel. He could hear the approach of something small but he was still shocked to find himself looking down at Sonics daughter. She had grown since he had found her in the canyon over a year ago but she was still much too little to be alone. For the first time since he could remember, he hoped Sonic was not far behind.

"Hi," she chirped, smiling widely at him.

"Hello," he gasped, "Nula. Have you run away again?"

She shook her head roughly but she looked sheepish all the same. She was the image of Amy Rose when she pulled that face.

"I told you before, that's not safe," he said, about to reach a hand out to her but realising it was covered in blood. He couldn't scare her.

"We go fly?" she asked, jumping on the spot.

He coughed, but forced a small smile as he felt himself weaken, "Not this ti..."

As his arm grew too heavy to hold up his hand slipped, revealing the open wound. But rather than be scared the little hoglet inched closer and put a small hand on his head. She patted him lightly, but he was barely aware of it.

"Oops you have owie. Mummy fix it. She aaaaways fixing Daddy."

His last view before his world went black was a miniature streak of lilac disappearing toward the mouth of the cave.

* * *

"Well, you have really done it this time, haven't you handsome?"

Shadow twitched his ear towards the sound, but his eyelids were still too heavy to open. He felt warm and comfortable, and that sultry voice could only belong to one of the few creatures he trusted.

"Rouge, where am I?"

Her heard her sigh loudly. She was always one for melodrama but it was mostly when she was truly concerned. It put them both as ease to joke about situations like this.

"Tails labs. Seemed like the most logical place at the time, given Sonic forbid you from being dumped in his house."

His eyes snapped open, "The girl!"

Rouge jumped up and put a hand against his chest, "Woah cowboy, she's fine. She may very well have saved your life, so lie back down before you end up wasting her effort."

He was still too weak to put up much of a fight and he lay back down. He was in a very clinical looking room, one arm hooked up to a drip and Rouge sat beside the bed, but otherwise it was empty. Though they were in harsh, fluorescent light, the small window revealed it was deep in the night. The stars twinkled distantly in the clear night, and bar the gentle hum of the bulb it was silent. He felt safe for the first time in months.

"I've been trying to get hold of you for quite a while now. I'm happy to cover for you Shadow, but the deal was you needed to tell _me_ what you were up to."

He didn't dare turn to look at her and face those accusing, azure eyes, so he let his eyelids drop again. She wasn't wrong, he had promised that if ever he was on a solo mission he would let her know and she would hide his actions from their bosses. In the years they had worked together she had never let him down and he owed her a great deal.

"It wasn't my intention to hide anything from you. I ended up in a situation I wasn't prepared for and I couldn't communicate with anyone."

She sighed again, "Well I didn't mean that, though I am curious to know how you managed to get yourself so thoroughly beaten up. I was more thinking about...those nights you were away...some months ago..."

He finally looked at her with a curious glance. Her arms were folded across her chest defensively but her eyebrows were arched and expectant. It wasn't until this point he noticed she was wearing a nurses outfit.

"Undercover mission?" he asked.

She looked down at herself. She opened her mouth a couple of times and finally rested on pouting at him.

"I was stealing the equipment we needed to patch you up. Plus, a uniform seems to catch the eye of that hunk of echidna out there. But don't change the subject on me! What were you up to last May? When you weren't yourself."

"May..." he muttered to himself, and tried to trace back. He moved around so much it was hard to pick up on the events of one month. She was clearly hinting at something so he racked his memory for something significant.

May. Oh, yes, May. It had begun in the May.

There was a soft knock at the door. Shadows natural reaction was to spring to the defence but Rouge once again pushed him back in to place.

"Who is it?" Rouge called out.

"The actual nurse. Is the patient awake?"

Rouge gave a nod to Shadow to let him know all was well before she called for them to enter.

In strolled a pretty vixen. She was not wearing a uniform but she held a tray in her hand with some dressing and tablets on. She smiled politely at Shadow but scowled when she shifted her glance to Rouge. She shuffled round to the side of the bed where Rouge stood and she put a block between the. The bat looked ready to kill.

"Hey! Who do you think..."

"Hello, Shadow," the vixen sighed, interrupting Rouges verbal assault, "I'm Zooey, Tails fiancé. I have patched you up as well as I can. I would have preferred you were taken to the hospital but I have been asked to keep your presence here secret. I will however," she said, turning back to Rouge, "need to ask you to leave while I change his dressings."

Rouge rested her hands on her curvy hips, "Is this what you call a good bedside manner?"

"I respect Tails wishes but I don't have to like them. Out."

The bat went to retaliate but out the corner of her eye she saw Shadow begin to droop again and she thought better of it. With a shrug she made for the door, taking a last glance back at her teammate before exiting the room.

Sonic was stood in the hallway, one shoulder leaning against the wall and staring hard at her. Rouge was used to being looked at like that and she winked at the hedgehog in return.

"I think Nurse Ratchet is upset I fill out this uniform so much better than she does," she sighed in her deep, flirty voice, "you ever thought about getting one for that girlfriend of yours?"

"Wife," he snapped, "and she doesn't have to disguise herself to get in to places."

Rouge felt her nose twitch, "I seem to recall the two of you asking me to do this! Can't risk girly fox losing her job by asking her to sneak files and supplies."

He frowned a little deeper, but with a slight incline of his head he agreed to his part in this. They had needed her expertise, both as a spy for the government and as a thief. She claimed her criminal days were in her past but there had been a twinkle in her eye when she was asked to break in to the hospital. Sonic suspected she had lifted more than she had handed over to them. Old habits die hard.

"Since I didn't see him burst through the roof I'm assuming you didn't tell him?"

She scowled harder than she had all evening, "He has no idea that baby exists, I guarantee it. I know you don't doubt him this much. Look at what happened today! Between you and your daughter you saved his life!"

Sonic briefly flushed red across his muzzle, but dismissed her with a flick of his hand.

"I didn't know where Nula was dragging me, but I couldn't very well leave him once I found him. 'Daddy and Mummy make him better' she kept saying. I don't care what happens to him, but I wasn't about to upset my little shooting star."

Rouge smirked deeply, "But if it wasn't for him, you may not have had said shooting star, because you wouldn't even have the wife. Don't try to act like he didn't save Amy's life that awful night. I'm sure you remember"

Of course he could remember. There had been a few weeks that year he didn't want to remember, but that night he had nearly lost her.

He had broken his ankle and in a haze of painkillers, he didn't even know she had gone missing. A freak, harsh winter storm had closed the village off from the world. They were without power and had no supplies to deal with cold climates. Amy Rose, unable to watch her loved ones and neighbourhood suffer, had ventured out to try and save the day. Buried deep in the mountains would be the crystal they needed to regenerate the power.

She had been blind to the severity of the storm. Unable to see ground from sky, she had ventured out on to the frozen lake, and fallen through the ice. The shock of the cold had knocked her out instantly.

Shadow, after bonding so closely with Amy, had been close by and able to pull her from the water. They had both survived unscathed, but Sonic wouldn't forget the day he failed her.

"That was a long time ago," Sonic finally mumbled, trying to shake off a thousand images that closed in on him, "and apparently there are other lives he should be concentrating on."


	4. Mothers

_So I don't have to end with another ranty PM, I'm just going to clear a few things up in these notes, and if you "aren't going to read any more" then I'm not forcing anyone to._

 _1\. You do not have to read my other story, but to clarify a few things; when Amy was 16 she and Shadow had a summer fling. They bonded, but she was in love with Sonic and it was Sonic she ended up with. During that same time was the winter incident mentioned, where Sonic couldn't save her and that haunts him. Shadow was left with residual feelings for Amy, but he knew it wouldn't work. This will be mentioned in this work too, but to save confusion now you know._

 _2\. I shouldn't take for granted that not everyone has read the comics. So, yes the previous story was Boom Universe. This story is NOT exclusively Boom, but since that is a big plot point I didn't want to ruin it right away. There are other "Universes", and as the other one in this story isn't Boom, I set this story in this category. And to be blunt, most people aren't aware Boom has its own category, I reach more readers here._

 _3\. Don't ever say you are "disappointed" in someones work. It's rude. Not every question will be answered right away, that is how cliffhangers work. IF something never gets answered, fair enough I made a mistake, but please give me a chance to get them in to my work before PMing me insults._

 _Very sorry for the long winded opener. **Tl;dr, questions will be answered in time. PM's are now turned off. Two Universes cross over in this story.**_

 _Sonic, Shadow and Amy belong to Sega._

 _Nula and Brant are mine_

* * *

When Shadow finally opened his eyes again, he was alone and all the harsh, artificial light was gone. His head still felt woozy but the pain in his chest had eased considerably. That arrow had come so close to piercing his heart. Had she not been involved it would have been no worse than a bug bite, as it was he came close to facing his own mortality.

The door creaked open, and a tiny silhouette made it's way to the end of his bed. Bathed in a nightdress, little Nula hopped up on to the covers and crawled over to him. He was unsurprised to see her by this point, and when she nestled herself under his arm he let her. Her fur gave off the same clean smell of peaches he was used to detecting on her Mother. It comforted him mostly, but caught on that same breeze was sour regret. There had been a window, years ago now, when he might have been in Sonics place. A simple life, a loving wife, worshipped by the masses and always wanted. There were days the idea was comical, and others where he wanted nothing more.

The door was pushed open a little further, and he could just about make out the outline of his old Bud. She was now a woman, but the youthful sparkle in her eyes shone even in the pale moonlight. Her quills were scattered about her face as if she had been caught in the wind, but by the darkness under her eyes he assessed she hadn't been sleeping well.

"How are you feeling?" she whispered, "I'm sorry about Nula, she wouldn't let me come without her."

"I'm well," he murmured back, "I see someone inherited her Fathers lack of ability to stay still?"

There was the smallest of laughs from Amy, but he could sense something was wrong. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness he could see she was carrying something in her arms.

"Can I come in?" her voice squeaked, as if the words were painful to say.

"Of course," he said in a deeper tone, trying not to alarm the girl falling asleep by his side,

Amy took a deep breath and entered, shutting the door behind her. Her footsteps were light across the tiled floor, sliding delicately as if on ice. He could see a bundle of blankets were what she carried. By the way they were folded he could guess what they contained. As she got closer the delicate package gave the smallest of sounds. A squeak, barely audible even in the silence of the midnight, but it echoed through his head like the ringing of a bell.

"Shadow, I don't know how to say this..."

"I had no idea you were expecting. Congratulations."

She gave him a smile but her frown betrayed her. She opened her mouth to speak but only managed to shake her head. Ushering Nula out of the way she sat down next to him on the bed and placed the delicate package in his arms. As his heart began to race, he pulled apart the coverings with a trembling hand.

His eyes were so wide they could have consumed the globe. They sparkled like a pair of rubies, in such stark contrast to the white of his orbs. His fur was like the night sky, a deep blue that almost shimmered amethyst. Cutting through the blue, was a lone streak of crimson that dashed his little forehead. Shadow stroked the line of red with his thumb and the tiny creature let out a chirrup in response.

Nula scooted herself closer and tickled the babies cheek. He smiled brightly up at them, emitting a giggle that sent a wave of warmth throughout the room.

"Look Brant! We found a Daddy for you!" the lilac hoglet beamed.

"Brant," Shadow murmured to himself. The name of his son. His world as he knew it had been made complete the moment he had locked eyes with his child, but just as soon as he felt contentment reality was quick to smash through the walls of his peace. Amy, seeing the inner conflict burning in his eyes, placed a hand carefully on Shadows forearm.

"You didn't know?" she asked, quietly.

"I didn't even think it was possible," he croaked, "I didn't think...I was capable of...of being..."

"Daddy," Nula cried, leaping off the bed and towards the door. None of them had noticed it had opened, nor the witness to the scene. Sonic lifted Nula up and tucked her under his arm, letting her squeal in amusement. Without another word he left, closing the door and taking his own offspring with him.

"We've been looking after him," Amy sighed, turning back to him, "he was left on our doorstep weeks ago. We've been looking for you since then."

Shadow didn't look away from the child, "How many weeks?"

"Seven I think. There was...a note."

From her pocket she produced a piece of paper, and unfolding it she lay it down for him to read. Below the childish drawing of a flower, in very elegant script were the words _'This is Brant. I cannot care for him any longer. Find his father, he is the only one who will be able to handle this nightmare'._

"Nightmare?" Shadow growled lowly, "how could he possibly..."

"He's anything but!" Amy quickly interrupted, "he's been a dream to look after. Any Mother would..."

"She wouldn't do this," he snapped a little louder, but as Brant made a small cry Shadow calmed himself down and stroked his cheek to sooth him. His actions were so instinctual he was barely aware he was doing them. Amy moved herself around so she sat next to them both, and he leaned his head against her shoulder as the weight of so many questions took him over.

"I know it's hard to think anyone would desert their baby, but..."

"No Bud, she _wouldn't_ have abandoned him. The most important thing to her is her remaining family. She is an angel...and she is fiercely loyal to those she loves. I don't understand how they got him here, but this note is either a cover or a forgery."

He threw back the covers, and eased himself in to a standing position, careful to not disturb the little creature half way asleep in his arms. The love he had found in the child's Mother poured out of him tenfold in to his son. He had never known such a sudden rush of emotion before and it burned through him to his core. He was a _Father_ , he held a responsibility he would never be able to walk away from. A position he had never thought possible, but perhaps had wanted for so many years of his immortal life.

"She's in danger," he finally breathed.

Amy gasped, "Why? Because of the baby?"

"There are several reasons why. We...mistakes were made, and we took risks...but I never considered the consequences of my actions would affect another life. I have to get back to her."

Amy sighed, "That might not be the case. Perhaps he had shown some abilities that she didn't think she could handle...but knowing Sonic and I had a daughter who had inherited her Fathers powers she..."

"No!" he told her sternly, looking round to face her, "unless it was life or death, I know she wouldn't have left him behind."

Amy looked at him with a pity she couldn't hide, "how do you know that for certain?"

"Because," he sighed, looking her straight in her emerald eyes, "she is you."


	5. The Lady Rose

_I can't call them these things in the story of course, so to clarify._

 _The Amy and Sonic with a daughter/where most of the present takes place: Boom Universe._

 _Where Shadow is originally from: Sonic X comics (he is never seen again, comic continuity, not TV show. In my AU he is now Boom Shadow)_

 _Where Lady Rose/King Sonic/King Shadow reside: Alternate future in the Archie Comic Pre-Genesis Wave era. I believe we never learn of King Shadows fate, so I am working on that basis. This will be covered more in following chapters._

 _I am sure I have got details incorrect or I am missing something out or ignoring something, but please let me have some artistic liberty. I have read these comics, I research as I go along to try and keep up, but with all the chopping and changing that went on I do the best I can._

 _None of these characters belong to me, bar Nula and Brant. They belong to Sega or the writers of Archie comics._

* * *

Her limbs felt heavy, and the short walk home was labourious and slow. He head was too full but her heart couldn't take any more, so his words hung over her body, like wading through tar. The world around her wasn't much more than a blur, and it was only by default movements that she finally pushed open her front door.

He was waiting up for her. At the very least, he had tried to wait up for her, but upright as he sat his eyes were closed tight. Her one true love, her husband, her Sonic. It would have been nicer to not disturb him but she needed him to quiet the demons in her head. She kicked off her shoes, and the thump as they landed sounded loudly in the still of the night, and with a snort he opened his eyes.

"Oh, um I was just reading," he lied, "I must have dozed off."

She smiled weakly, "Do you really still worry about me Sonic?"

He grinned back, "Look I don't know why I followed you to Shadow. Morbid curiosity I guess? Ever since the baby appeared all I've wanted to do is throttle him for deserting..."

Amy coughed out a heavy sob, and covered her face with her hands as tears flowed as freely as a waterfall. She felt him take a hold of her, muttering apologies, but she shut down for just a minute or two and indulged in her sadness. After so many weeks she had come to question Shadow too, and just as suspicions rose he appeared to smash them in to a thousand pieces. She had left Brant with his Father.

She finally pulled her head back and took a deep breath, "Sonic, do you know anyone named Sally?"

He furrowed his brow, "Where has that question come from?"

"Do you?" she demanded.

He was taken aback by the look of fear in her eye, "I...no, I don't think so. I mean...I've met lots of creatures but...Sally doesn't ring a bell. Why?"

Amy let out a deep sigh, and wrapped her arms around him, "I can't imagine my world without you Sonic."

He stroked her quills, "Hey I'm not going anywhere! Ames what's happened? What did he say to you?"

She nuzzled his chest and breathed him in, soaking up as much of his love as she could, before telling him Shadow's story.

* * *

There are many universes. There are many Sonics, several Tails, many Amy's, but only a few Shadows. In the world he had originally come from, he had died. Or at least that is what that world still believed, and it granted him freedom from the horrors of his past. In his world, he was a spy along with Rouge. This wasn't the only world they existed in, or they were agents in. However, in the reality where Sticks was present, they did not exist at all. Many years ago Shadow had been stationed there to spy on that universe, to make sure there would be no enemies who could travel between worlds and cause mayhem. He could have told GUN within months this world was the safest, but in a place where he didn't exist he was free. Carrying the weight of his past and his secret mission, he had become an antagonist to start with, but after accepting he didn't need to fight anyone or protect his identity, it had become his favourite place to be. After the events with Amy all those years ago, where Shadow had saved her life and weakened himself in the process, Rouge had fallen in to that world too. It was not theirs, they could not remain there indefinitely, so they lied about their whereabouts to their superiors.

Of course they could not always get out of work, and Shadow had been required to visit a world he had heard of in passing. It's wavelength had been distorted, once it had known alternate timelines and other worlds. After a cataclysmic event that few were able to recall, memories of such things were lost to the Mobians, and the only reality they knew was the one they lived in.

But Shadows original world knew of them, and sensors indicated powers that could rock realities foundations. They had warned him that another version of himself existed in that world, but he didn't know the trouble the other him had caused until he was there.

In some respects, it was an old fashioned place. Between vast forests where kingdoms and old castles. Kings and Queens ruled over their lands, with one King ruling over them all. The King of Mobius, Sonic the Hedgehog.

Shadow had been lucky to a degree. When he had appeared in this world, he was buried in one of the many forests, away from prying eyes and the general public. The first living creature he had stumbled upon had given him so many details, left him in no doubt that things were not right with that world, and informed him that 'he' was to be killed on sight.

Amy Rose. Or in this world, the Lady Amy Rose. She had been sat at the base of a large tree, some cards laid out in front of her. She was in a regal dress, and she was older than the Amy he had loved once, but there was no mistaking it was her. It was a foolish risk to approach her so openly, but he was certain it was just them, and with all he and the other Amy had been through she could not surprise him.

She had looked up at him only briefly, before frowning and looking back down at the cards laid before her.

"I believe I made myself clear the other day Your Highness," she sighed, "remove yourself from this Kingdom or I shall inform my cousin. If he doesn't kill you himself, he will simply raise the bounty on your head."

He froze mid-step. The words she had said were cold but she had delivered them with an almost playful affection. Perhaps, like another Amy he had once known, she had mistaken him for his Royal Blueness.

"I am...not the King...I am..."

"I do not know what to refer to you as, ex King," she interrupted, "but when last we met you were adamant I would still call you Your Highness. What should I call you?"

He hesitated as the softness in her voice had taken a crisp turn.

"Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog."

She sniffed, "If this is your attempt at humility I am far from impressed."

"I was not trying to impress you."

"No?" she laughed, "well that is a new one on me too. Only here I was thinking your attempts to woo me involved impressing me. Unless you have finally given that up?"

He raised his eyebrows, "to woo you?"

She flicked her hand at his dismissively, "The Queen married you to try and protect us from you. Though I am certain you found it advantageous having her in your chambers, she did not love you. I would have thought her quick marriage to King Sonic would have given that away. Marrying me will gain you no powers, Your Ex-Highness. I am far down the line of succession to the Mercian crown."

He stared at her, but she continued to turn her cards and pay him no heed. What had he done to lose a Kingdom? Why was he to be killed on site?

"Why are you not Queen?"

The words were out of his mouth and in her ears before he could take them back. She raised her head slowly, a fire burning behind her green eyes. Under the dress and the cold aura he could see his own Bud buried there, but she was weakening.

"Be gone from my sight. I should not be speaking with you, it is an act of treason. You have made my long days seem shorter, Shadow the Ex-King, but the thrill of our dangerous liaison wilts. Go or I shall call for the guard."

She had stood and raised her chin high in a look of defiance, but even now he could see a glint in her eye reserved for those up to mischief. She was enjoying this.

"Please Miss Rose, I am not the Shadow of your world. I have come from another place entirely. I bare you no ill will."

She looked him up and down, "That's a new one on me."

He bowed his head slightly, "It is no lie. There are many worlds running along side yours, some are at a different point in time. This might all sound like fairy tales, but once this world knew these things."

She inclined her head, "If what you say is true, will you indulge me in a little card reading?"

He looked towards her feet where the cards lay, "I don't believe in fortune telling."

She threw her head back and laughed, the sound shattering the peacefulness of their setting.

"You've played along before, I know what you will draw, for it never changes. I am no fake here to make money. What I read in the cards is real. Now, sit, or we are done here and you can answer to cousins bow."

He held up his hands in apology and walked over to her. They both kneeled down and for a second he lost himself in looking at her familiar movements. She was older, but to someone like him, age was of little consequence.

She shuffled the oversized cards carefully and fanned them out on the grass before them.

"Take three, and lay them face down in front of you."

He was tempted to take the first three, but if he was to get information from her he would have to play along, so he chose three at random and lay them before him.

"We have done this several times now," she sighed, "you always end up with the same three cards, yet now you question my ability. Why is that?"

He rested his hands back on his knees, "I told you, I am not the same Shadow."

She gave him a sarcastic smile and nodded, before proceeding to turn over the first card. It was the Moon.

"Is that my card?"

She snapped her eyes up at him, "You know it's meant to be the Emperor. This Moon. This shows uncertainty. There is a wariness in your unconscious thought. The light of the Moon is dim, the path forward is poorly lit. Monsters dwell within the darkness."

He shook his head, "I guess any Shadow would draw that?"

She pursed her lips, "No, he...you are too arrogant for that now."

She turned over the next card.

"The Magician. No...this should be the Tower. It's always the Tower!"

He shrugged, "So? What do they mean?"

"Power," she spat, "in different ways. The Tower, it is the failing of power, the loss of control, the realisation that you are at the mercy of your subconscious."

"And the Magician?"

She furrowed her brow, "The power held within you. The Magician is the bridge between reality and...a higher plain of existence. He is knowledge of other realms."

He spread his palms, and smiled carefully at her. Whatever she was reading in these cards it seemed to be working to his advantage.

"Before we turn it, what would this be?" he asked, enjoying watching her face twist and turn in confusion.

"The Devil. The one you pride yourself on the most."

Before she could touch it he flipped it himself.

"The Lovers," the both said in unison.

"Does not mean what you think," she quickly added, "it can mean the forging of new relationships. It is balance and understanding, a representation of unity."

He took her hand, and she did not pull away. Amy Rose, no matter what world she came from she was strong in her beliefs. It had paid off well for him here, and she was looking at him with new eyes.

"If there is danger here, if the world is unbalanced, I will stabilise it. But I need you to not call the guards on me, and I will need all the information on this Ex-King you can give me. I am not him, but that does not mean I don't understand him."

She looked up at him from under her lids, a delicate blush playing across her nose. Taking a stern grip of his hand she shook it hard.

"I have faith in the cards. I can see you clearly now, Shadow the Hedgehog. Welcome to Deerwood Forest."


	6. Rumours

_This chapter is a flashback of sorts. It's establishing the start of the origins of baby Brant. Set in Alternative Pre-Genesis wave Knottingham, because in the comics Amy is descended from royalty. That part is canon._

 _I'm finding these chapters hard to make very interesting, but they are too important to skirt over._

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega and Archie._

 _Orla, Helen and Anne are my creations._

* * *

Amy held her head high as she walked through Knottingham. The once failing Kingdom was now a thriving hub of culture and art. It did not have the same power as Acorn, or the highly advanced technology of the new Echidna Tribes, but the people there were happy. Families were raised, very few left. The King was beloved by his people, and though he was more an adventurer than a ruler, the Queen Mari-Anne and their son Prince Jon aided his leadership with strong and wise hearts.

Amy had always been royalty by blood. Her parents had given up their power and wealth to help the people of their Kingdom, and eventually they had lost their lives in the Robotnik wars. Now peace was restored and her cousin Rob had been crowned, she was once again the Lady she was born to be. But she was not the woman she had wanted to be.

She had trained and fought for years as a Freedom Fighter, her body belonging to her Princess and her heart to Sonic. In the years they believed Sonic to be dead, during the time Sally married Shadow to try and mellow his aggressive leadership, Amy had cut her ties with her old life. Her days were slow and tedious. She had walled herself up in the castle and mourned the life she was never going to live. When Sonic returned to marry his childhood sweetheart Sally, she was elated and broken over and over again. She dedicated her time to clairvoyance and psychokinesis, making to time to fall in love or start a family of her own.

The overthrown King Shadow had vanished after the Prince and Princess, Manik and Sonia, had destroyed Tichaos. Some presumed he was dead, but those who had known him in their youth knew better. There was nothing on their world that could kill him, but he had not been seen or heard from in over a year.

That's when Amy had picked up signals that he was alive, and close by. It had been the wrong thing to do, there was a bounty on his head, but she had attempted to hunt him down all the same. It was in Deerwood forest that they had run in to each other.

He had looked so weak. Though he did not age as they did, he finally looked like the world could take it's toll on him. Pity had stayed her feet, and memories of him when she was a teenager had silenced her voice. His time as King were a peace under fear, but a peace all the same. His intentions were misguided, but she still believe they had once been noble.

But after speaking, she knew the Shadow she had known as a girl was buried under a bitter creature. He had asked her to marry him in that first conversation, hoping to use her Royal lineage to worm his way back to the top. She had not fallen for it, and though he promised he would return she told nobody of their meeting. Or the meetings they had since then. He was no danger any more, and though he had proposed a tie between them several times, all of which she turned down, she had never come to any harm. Sally had brought him some peace as his Queen, perhaps as a friend Amy could do the same. He was dark and he was heavy with anger, and she fought her desire to see him, but meeting with him in secret had been giving her the thrill she had been missing from her life for so many years.

Now this new Shadow had come along. She could see a light in his eyes. The same light that had since burned out in the old King. He carried himself with a less defensive stance, and his voice, while still gruff, did not carry the same anger. He had told her he was simply there to observe, to make sure no power could grow so strong as to destabilise the universe again. She believed him, and her gut rarely steered her wrong any more. She was losing faith the ex King could revert to the soul he once was, but perhaps this new Shadow could do what she could not.

"My Lady, you are late again."

Amy had made it through the castle and to the door of her chambers without being spotted, but as her hand feel on the door handle she heard the sound she was dreading.

"I don't have a curfew Orla, I've been an adult for several years now."

The otter stood with her hands on her slender hips. She had been Amy's Lady in Waiting for nearly five years, and she still treated Amy like a misbehaving child. It was Orla who had cared for Amy in her darkest days, and though she was overbearing it was out of love. Her face was gentle even when she was angry, but much like Amy she too had once been a tough fighter. Amy suspected she had been enlisted as a guardian, but in a time of peace she had little to guard against. Or so she thought.

"I simply mean your meals are prepared at a designated time, and the King expects you at his table," Orla sighed.

Amy let her head fall backwards, "we are not in Medieval times any more. I understand Rob likes his traditions but I am perfectly capable of cooking for myself and eating at a time that suits me."

"You are a Lady, but the staff want to serve you because they admire you. The King and the Prince enjoy your company. I wish you would stop fighting your position in this castle."

Amy went to retort but Orla had already turned and walked away. It was a speech she had delivered several times over, a poor attempt at guilt but she seemed to believe her words were gold. Rob understood more than most Amy's need for freedom, and Prince Jon had his own child to worry about these days. However, with a deep groan Amy slowly made her way to the hall to join them in the remains of dinner, and to take a second to step back and wonder how many Amy's were doing the same thing.

"...because I still believe he is out there Father. King Sonic may not have the same concerns but our Kingdom is smaller and liable to fall if..."

"Steady your tongue Jon. I shall have no more of this scaremongering at this table. Tis nay but idle gossip."

"We must show the people we are listening to their concerns. They are fearful Father, and fearful masses are as much a danger as the shadows they fear!"

"SILENCE!"

Robs voice echoed around the hall as Amy finally entered. She had become accustomed to meals ending up in an argument between Father and Son. She didn't not bat an eyelid as she took her seat beside Helen, Jon's wife, and their daughter Anne.

"Dearest Cousin," Rob sighed, seating himself down after standing to make his voice heard, "I am glad to see your safe return."

She smile while inwardly rolling her eyes, "Thank you Rob. I did come across a vicious band of ducklings on my way but I fought them off."

Little Anne laughed and made a couple of quaking sounds. Amy tickled her stomach, making her giggle even harder.

"This is no laughing matter Aunt Amy," Jon jumped in. He had called her Aunt since he could talk, though she was also technically his cousin once removed, "there is rumour that the followers of the dishonourable ex-King have been spotted close to our borders."

"The Dark Presence? They renounced Shad...the ex-King at the time," Amy replied.

"Those who chose to. There is word that some remain loyal and that they are aiding him as we speak."

"Without the leadership of Lien-Da, they are nought but a group of miscreants at worst," Rob interrupted.

"Jon is right though dear," the Queen added in a soothing tone, "we must at least show the people we are paying attention to them."

"The ex-King has a fair bounty upon his head. He is to be brought to me to face trial before King Sonic if he is discovered. What else should you wish me to do dear wife?"

"An order to kill on sight!"

Helen put her hand on her husbands shoulder to calm him, their increasingly raised voices now clearly upsetting little Anne. Amy scooped up the child and started dancing her around the room. She had heard this conversation many times before and she still felt the guilt ebb away at her.

"Please Jon, there has been enough violence," Helen whimpered. She was, and always had been, a timid creature. Her heart was pure and she was a dedicated wife, but Amy doubted she would be much of a Queen.

Jon patted her hand, "how about this instead then. A notice to go out that anyone who aligns themselves with the old regime is to be arrested and tried as a traitor of Mobius."

Rob shook his head, "Cousin, what are your thoughts on this matter?"

Amy stopped dancing and stood still, much to the upset of the child in her arms.

"My thoughts?"

"Verily. Are we to fear the ex-King's influence? Are the people right in their gossip? Is a bounty upon his head a worthy punishment? Or is he to be slain on sight?"

She had never been asked her opinion on the matter before. It was not that Rob did not consult with her, but legally she had no right in the say of the running of the Kingdom. She was unprepared, and to give away her connection to the ex-King now would break the hearts of those she loved. She could not speak the truth, but neither could she outright lie to them either. She owed Rob her life.

"I believe," she said after a long silence, "that there is more danger in trying to kill him than capture him. He is not a mortal in the way we are, an attempt on his life may mean the demise of his attacker. His fate should be decided by Son...King Sonic, and he alone."

Rob smiled, pleased with her answer, and she sat back down at the table to eat. Jon still wasn't impressed, worrying that their kingdom would act if the King didn't. What Amy had said was true, it was more dangerous to make an attempt on Shadows life than to bind him. She knew he was weak, she doubted he still had followers, but having the other Shadow keeping a watch on them reassured her all the same.

She met him again, at the same spot the following day. When she discovered him waiting for her she initially panicked. They looked virtually identical, the ex-King and the distant hero. But this new Shadow felt different. His aura, though troubled, was not as dark. He was more the Shadow she had known as a teenager, before the dark times.

"You have to be careful," she berated, "there is rumour the ex-King is gathering his remaining followers. The locals are on the look out for...well you."

He didn't look too concerned, "I am here to ascertain if that is a likely scenario. Since you are my inside information, I am willing to take that risk to meet with you."

"If you were to meet him, your plan is to stop him?" she asked, a shade too eagerly.

"Should it come to that. His spike in power caused concern to G.U.N and they sent me to make sure it isn't a danger to other worlds."

She flared, "But if he was just a danger to us you wouldn't be here?"

He crossed his arms, feeling the rise in her temper, "Your Shadow was incapacitated in the past. I am sure whoever did that could do so again.

Amy flinched slightly, "Don't call him that. He is not _my_ Shadow. Not any more."

He sighed heavily, seeing the fire that had sparked inside her burn out almost instantly. The Amy of his world was a strong woman, but still so immature all these years on. The Amy he had grown closest to was also a fighter but had been an adult long before she reached adulthood. This Amy, though her words were strong, she had wilted.

"Tell me what you can. My superiors will decide future actions based on what you tell me."

She thought for a moment, "I gather you are able to teleport without chaos emeralds?"

He nodded.

She put a finger to her lips, "We are too exposed here in the open. One of the windows to my quarters looks out on to the river. It is in an inaccessible entrance to anyone but yourself. If you follow the woods north, keeping the river in site you will come to the castle. Stay hidden until you see me at the window."


	7. Father to Father

Sonic et al belong to Sega

Nula and Brant belong to me

* * *

 _ **Present**_

Amy woke with a start, finding the space next to her devoid of both husband and daughter. She was still in the clothes she was in the night before, and she felt utterly exhausted. A sound from the kitchen caught her ear, and with a heavy head she managed to drag herself from the bedroom.

In the middle of preparing what looked to be lunch, was Sticks. In the years Amy had known her she hadn't changed a great deal. She still lived alone in her feral dwelling on the edge of the woods. She was the village nut case, but all the same had proven herself a hero time and again. Though she was very protective of Nula, and Nula in turn thought Auntie Sticks was the greatest, Amy didn't feel too comfortable leaving them alone together. Sticks would never let her come to any harm, but she might influence a bad habit or two.

"You slept like the dead," Sticks called over to her, smiling gently.

"I feel like the walking dead," she replied, "what time is it?"

"Gone midday," the badger hummed, finishing off the omelette she was frying. Amy could see the large piece of shell still inside it.

"I can't believe I was out for so long. Where are Sonic and Nula?"

Sticks pulled a chair out for her and indicated for Amy to sit down. The pink hedgehog settled herself in front of a lunch she could not face.

"He came and got me some hours ago. He asked me to come over and have a talk with you. He took Nula with him, but I dunno where they went."

Amy prodded her food, half expecting it to prod back, "Did he say what we were to talk about?"

Sticks took a large mouthful from her own plate, crunching down on an egg shell, "other worlds."

Amy let out a deep sigh as the memories of Shadows story came back to her. The tale of the Lady Amy and King Sonic, and the ex-King who was the ultimate reason baby Brant had been born. Her Shadow had become fond of the Lady, and on his last night there they had conceived the child, unbeknownst to Shadow who didn't know he had a son until last night. The fate of the Lady was now the biggest mystery.

"You met another Amy once, didn't you? In that other world?" Amy asked.

"You wouldn't believe me would you? Not that I blame you I guess, but it's not like other universes should be a surprise to you now. We've come across them before."

"What was she like?"

Sticks looked Amy all over, and decided to pick her words carefully. Something was clearly eating away at her friend.

"I think she was younger than you, or at least she acted younger. She was still pretty good in a punch up. Kinda besotted with Sonic though. I didn't really get to speak to her."

Amy puffed out her cheeks, "Besotted with him?"

Sticks chewed a claw, an old habit for when she was finding words difficult, "Yea like, school girl with a crush. Like I say this was just from what I saw, I'm sure she would have chilled out. She would be an adult by now too. More haste less speed when it comes to getting him to fall for you eh?"

Amy was shocked to find a tear falling down her face, but as it hit the table she stared at it as if it were an alien creature. Silently Sticks stood behind her and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. Affection was rare from the badger.

"What's going down pinkie?" she asked.

Amy swallowed hard, "The baby...Brant...he comes from another Universe. From...from another Amy."

Sticks squealed and Amy slammed her hands over her poor ears. It had been a very long time since she had heard this particular scream but it was Sticks chosen sound of confusion.

"I knew he was never over you! That sport striped love rat! What did he think he was going to do? Bribe you in to running away with him to look after that child instead?!"

"Woah Sticks!" Amy cried, standing up and grabbing her friend by the head, "you're in paranoia mode! Deep breaths! Calm down!"

"He can't have you so he REPLACES you with YOU? What kind of monster does..."

"STICKS!"

The younger female froze in the face of the anger of her friend. Amy Rose had a short temper and Sticks had smashed through it with a battering ram. Sticks clamped her jaw shut and, releasing herself from Amy's grip, sat back down at the table, ears falling against her head in shame.

"Perhaps I should let you explain more?"

Amy snorted, "perhaps so! This is hard enough for everyone involved without you adding to the stress, okay?"

The badger gave a weak nod as Amy sat down.

"She isn't me. She looks like me maybe, but you just said the Amy you met was different. He grew fond of her certainly but I think it was just a moment that led to something neither of them expected. The only thing that I could say of any of my counterparts, is that none of us would abandon a child. Strange abilities, odd strengths, if that Amy has a Sonic and Knuckles and Shadow in her world these things are no surprise."

Sticks tilted her head, "This other Amy cheated on Sonic?"

Amy licked her lips, "that Amy and Sonic aren't together. He's the King of their world, married a Princess, his childhood sweetheart. That Amy...she's alone...a Lady and part of a Royal household. Their Shadow was King once, but power corrupted him and he was overthrown. Our Shadow went there to assess if he was a danger, Lady Amy providing details as she has been seeing King Shadow and...maybe falling in love with him. I don't know, that's what I believe from what our Shadow told me."

Sticks didn't scream, and it was only by putting her hand under her nose that Amy could tell she was still breathing. Sticks didn't take anything remotely unusual well, and Amy had given her too much in one go. The badger had shut down and would take a while to reboot.

Amy took the rare moment of peace and went and sat back down on her bed. Her attachment to the baby, Sonics suspicions of him, Nula's seemingly other worldly connection to him, they all made sense in light of what Shadow had told her. Her memory reached back to her youth, when for a small moment in that long summer she became an adult she had wondered if Shadow would have been the right hedgehog for her. It was not to be for she loved Sonic more than she had ever dared admit.

She let herself cry quietly again. So much pain and so much love was before them. She feared now for the fate of the Lady Amy, who had saved her heart for the wrong King.

* * *

It has also been a long night for Shadow. Amy had helped him settle Brant to sleep and then left him with the baby. She was right, he had barely made a sound and he had slept deeply, but Shadow had spent the night simply staring at him. This little creature, this little creation, was a part of him. He had spent so many slow years believing some sense of normality was beyond him, and he certainly didn't believe he was able to reproduce. He had always been careful, just in case, but that moment with the Lady had been so sudden, so unplanned.

Once Brant had woken up and the helpful female fox had warmed some milk for him, he had walked the pair of them in to a clearing in the woods he knew well. Only a few of them knew there way there so the general populous wouldn't stumble upon them. Seating himself on the ground he had held his son carefully, but now he had finished his bottle he had begun to cry. It was quiet for a baby, but all the same he had begun to fret as the realisation he had no idea what he was doing threatened to crush him.

In his panic he hadn't sensed the other hedgehogs approaching. Sonic was stood next to him before he knew someone was there. He heard Nula giggle before she was balanced carefully on his head. Distracted by the child now sat on his quills he didn't argue when Sonic scooped Brant out of his lap.

"Yea it's all cute until afterwards," Sonic sighed, leaning the baby over his shoulder. Shadow silently watched as Sonic rubbed his back until Brant gave out a tiny burp.

"Oh hey," Sonic smiled, "no spit up. Nine times out of ten after feeding little miss there she would leave half of it in my fur."

"I...didn't realise you had to do that," Shadow admitted as Nula climbed down and wandered off to pick at the flowers. Settling himself down next to his old rival, Sonic passed Brant back over.

"Neither did I. Amy breast fed for the first few months so when I first bottle fed Nula I forgot. Man could that kid scream," Sonic laughed.

Shadow remained silent. Brant lay against his chest, tiny little hands grasping at his fur. It was impossible to conceive how something so little could seem to big.

"Thing is," Sonic started again, "I didn't really know anything until we had her. First of our friends to have kids, and we didn't feel much beyond teenagers ourselves. Amy delve in to her books, so she knew in principle what we had to do. Reality is vastly different."

"You were prepared at least," Shadow murmured.

Sonic scratched behind his ear, "well, sort of. We were getting...careless I suppose...but Amy's pregnancy still came as a shock."

Shadow looked over to him, "you wouldn't have guessed."

"If that is a dig about the time Nula ran away I..."

"No," Shadow stopped him, "I was being sincere."

The blue hedgehog let out a whoosh of air and lay his legs down flat. For a moment the two of them watched Nula walk around the quiet grassy clearing, singing softly to the flowers she was holding in her hands. To an outsider it would have seemed a perfectly normal scene, two fathers and their kids enjoying the morning sun. But so much hung in the air between them.

"Amy told me everything," Sonic finally whispered.

Shadow closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, "whatever you plan to say would you keep the language in check."

Sonic chuckled, "I gotta say I have had a few choice words for you. I mean I always have, but when I opened my eyes to find a red streaked baby in my lap they increased ten fold."

"You thought I knew about him?"

"Certainly did."

"How could you think I would run away from my own child?"

"Because," Sonic snapped a little too loudly, causing Nula to look up concerned. Sonic smiled widely at her which she seemed satisfied with.

"Because," he repeated, quietly, "I nearly did."

Brant gave a small cry. Shadow placed a hand on his back, the size difference so great he nearly covered him completely.

"When I found out Amy was pregnant, I ran. I ran and I ran until I realised how far I was from home. To be honest I didn't realise I even had bolted until I stopped. When I got back I told Amy it's because I was so happy, but hell I knew it was fear. As the months went on and Amy got bigger and moodier all I could think was there was this alien taking over my wife. No offence."

"None taken."

"So many times I found myself running further and further away, wondering how far I would have to go to get away from it all. Obviously, I always came home, but as the due date got closer my feet got itchier."

"What changed?"

Sonic smiled, "I laid eyes on her. This tiny little bundle, eyes shut tight and spines soft and flat, was placed in my hands. I swear, time stopped, and in that instant I knew I would give up everything for her. It was the hardest slap in the face, and I needed it. I was a Dad."

Shadow felt a sadness come over him. He would never have that rush of feeling, that very real wake up call. He missed his son be born, he hadn't been there for Amy when she needed him. It was a very poor start to his duties as a parent. He breathed in the scent of his child, imprinting it in to his memory forever.

"Look Shads, I know you haven't told Amy everything. You failed to tell her how you ended up a half dead mess in that cave. You don't want to worry her further, I get it", Sonic mumbled, turning to his black counterpart, "but you are going to tell me. If you want me to even begin to accept you fathered a child with another world equivalent of my wife, you will tell me right now."

Feeling a twinge of pain in the deep wound in his shoulder, Shadow turned his ruby orbs towards Sonic and nodded.

"Will you help me if I do?" he asked.

Sonic cocked his head sideways, "c'mon, who do you think you're talking to?"


	8. The King Falls

_If you have read the comics than a lot of this will be regurgitated, but it is important to include all readers. The final part of this chapter, the background Amy gives Shadow, is mostly canon. However as Amy is not mentioned in the 25/30 years later story arc, some artistic liberties have been taken._

 _To help, Lara-Su is Knuckles daughter and Argyle is Vectors son. It is suggested they have romantic feelings for each other in the comics._

 _Sonic et al belong to the Sega and Archie team._

* * *

Sonic looked out the window and rubbed his temple. It had been a long morning, and the wait for the impending panic made his head hurt even worse. He had heard the commotion from the lower levels, warning him of what was to come. Sure enough, Lara-Su burst through the heavy doors with a worried scowl on her face.

"Your highness," she spluttered, "we have a situation."

Sonic feigned a look of surprise, "what is it guardian?"

"Someone had broken in to the vaults! I don't know how they slipped by the guards but...sire we are chasing them down," she gasped, nodding her head.

He frowned, finding her expression hard to take. "Was anything taken?"

"The Queen has requested you join her in checking. I must go and help with the chase. I'm sorry I let you down."

He walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. Deceiving her was difficult for him. Lara-Su was the best he could have hoped for in a guardian, having helped save the Kingdom from Shadow more than once. But some things she didn't need to know about. Not even Sally could know of this.

"The catacombs hold any of the dangerous weapons. The vaults are more items kept for memories sake. Not just anyone could get by the guard. Go join them, and I'll head for the vaults."

She gave him a curt nod and flew out the window he had just been staring from. With his head still pounding, he prepared for the acting role of a lifetime. Trying to lie to his Queen.

* * *

Lara-Su had been worried this might happen since the ex-King had vanished. Though he and her wicked Aunt were gone, she felt there was always a chance that the Dark Presence would still have some loyal members. They had rounded up and arrested as many as they could. Those that did talk gave away names and places to find others. Though they had captured dozens of members of what must have been a small group, she still felt that some must have slipped through her fingers. If their king was still out there, weak as he may be, those that wanted to still had a leader to follow.

The island still floated above the mainland. Whoever had broken in to the vaults either had no intention of leaving, or would have to pass through the security measures between the island the and mainland. With her men combing the area she decided the best place for her would be at the station, so quick as she could she made her way there. Whoever she was chasing may have had a head start, but she had the power of Chaos and she was there in no time.

The city of Portal was busy at most times, but at that moment it was if all hell had broken loose. There were creatures from all walks of life massed together in an angry hoard. The staff behind the desks looked flustered and some were on the brink of tears. A porter was trying to calm the crowd, so she headed for him to get to grips with the situation.

"The system crashed about an hour ago," he answered her, flustered, "it seemed like a small error, but a virus is corrupting everything. We've lost all bookings, all payments, all security checks. We don't want to let anyone through but...well you can see how well they've taken the news."

Lara-Su looked around, trying to spot anyone that looked out of place. A sea of faces scowled back at her, and trying to find someone who didn't look suspicious would have been an easier challenge.

She growled in frustration and stepped back outside and away from the crowds. She called in a favour.

"Argyle," she breathed in to her communicator, "I need your help."

"Lara-Su!" he cried, not hiding the delight in his voice, "I mean...Guardian. How may I be of service."

"No need to be formal, but lots of need for speed," she replied, "someone has hacked in to the transportation systems at the station in Portal. First, help them get it up and running, and second can you find out who did it?"

He made a hum, "I will need permissions to..."

"They are granted," she jumped in, "myself and my Father have clearance to permit security breach investigations."

"As good as done. By the sound of it, this is a little more urgent than just shoppers not getting home?"

She debated explaining too much. She and Argyle were close, and as part of the new Freedom Fighters they were tasked with protecting all of Mobius. All the same, to admit she had let someone get in to the vaults of the castle was more than her pride could take.

"I will explain later," she finally told him, "I'll need the records of everyone who travels out today, and perhaps a weeks worth of who came in."

"Who are to searching for?"

She scratched her head in thought, "I don't know."

* * *

Shadow felt foolish as he stood silently in the ornate dressing room just off the main bedroom of the Lady's quarters. He had only just about teleported in to the castle when she had pushed him around the corner and put a finger to her lips. He stood flat again the wall but listened as an older female and a small child entered.

"Anne drew a flower for you my Lady," the older female voice said, "she wanted to come show you."

"Its a wose," came a delicate little voice, "pink wose Auntie Wosie."

He heard the Lady laugh and as she started to praise the child, he pictured his Amy and little Nula. He was happier for her than he ever could have put in to words, for even though she had doubted herself to start she had proven to be a wonderful Mother. He was jealous too of course. The image of her carrying his child, of them raising a family together, had never been far from his mind. He had stayed away from her as much as possible, but even after so many years the memory of their intimate summer clung to him. He would never take Sonics place in her life, this much he knew, but he vowed to be there for her and her daughter and he had no intention of breaking that promise. Sonic could protect them in their world, while he would guard them against the dangers from the outer universe.

"...if you don't mind Lady Rose, I'm going to put away your dresses for you."

He snapped back to reality and looked in vain for somewhere to hide and footsteps quickly approached.

"Orla, stop!" he heard Amy cry.

There was a pause before he heard the stranger speak again, "Is something wrong?"

Amy sighed dramatically, "I am...cleansing the aura of that room. Nobody can set foot in there or it will ruin everything and the bad spirits may return."

Both women fell silent again while the child hummed to herself. He did not know this world well enough to risk exposing the Lady's secrets, but not knowing the faces behind the voices frustrated him. He was about to take a careful peak around the doorway before the older female spoke up again.

"Ghosts. I see. Very well then, we shall leave you to it. Princess Helen has taken to her bed, so Anne and I go for a walk around the castle gardens."

"Why not take her to the lake?" Amy suggested, "the weather is fair."

"I do not dare risk it," the other replied sharply, "rumour has it the ex-King has been spotted in Deerwood Forest."

"Do NOT listen to rumour," Amy snapped at her, a little too harshly, "it spreads like wildfire and is just as dangerous. Shadow is nothing to be scared of."

He heard the other female walk toward the end of the room, and with a squeak of protest he assumed she had picked up the child.

"I hope you speak with your head and not your heart, my lady," was the parting, as the heavy door closed. He heard the lock be turned.

He looked around the corner to find Amy staring at the door with her arms folded and her foot tapping. That was signs of the Amy he knew.

"You are a convincing liar," he told her.

"It isn't hard," she replied, not looking away from the door, "Orla is the embodiment of sceptical but she is also bound to indulge me. I chuck the word 'ghost' around and she flees before she can argue with me."

He nodded, "I gathered, but I was referring to your words about the ex-King."

She snapped her gaze his way, "That wasn't a lie. He is nothing to be scared of."

Shadow scrutinized her face. She was harder to read than he expected an Amy to be. It was foolish to presume they were all the same woman. The ones he had met all had the same temper and skill with a hammer, but they were caring in nature even if they could be pushy with their opinions. There was a darkness in this Amy however, the sparkle in her eyes dimmed by an internal cloud. Her words were filled with conviction, but something in her expression looked tired, like she was bone weary of saying them.

"That is what I am here to discover for myself," he told her quietly, "if you could tell me everything, and then I can know better what to tell my superiors."

With a frown still across her pink brow, she nodded and indicated for him to take a seat. He perched on the edge of a deeply padded couch, while she placed herself on the edge of the giant, four poster bed. Tucking her legs up beside her, she smiled at him, and began.

"Shadow was more like you once. A stranger with a mysterious past, neither with us nor against us, but fond of a scrap or two with Sonic. He decided his fate in the end. A promise kept to one he loved, he was to protect Mobius from whatever threat that befell it."

"Maria," Shadow sighed quietly.

Amy furrowed her brows in concern, "you had a Maria too? I suppose some things are universal."

He cleared his throat, not eager to talk about himself, "A misplaced promise. I understand. Please continue."

She smiled gently at him again. It was an Amy smile.

"He did protect this world. When Sonic vanished so suddenly, the Freedom Fighters were tasked with leading the charge, but even with Knuckles we felt leaderless. Shadow stepped in to Sonics shoes, metaphorically of course. Our world was falling apart, nearly every country was fighting in itself and with each other, until he came crashing down upon them all. For saving the world he was made the King, but with that power came a terrible price."

Shadow rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "I am surprised power corrupted him."

She shook her head, "It didn't, at least not like that. Those first few years we were still by his side, but it was clear he had set in his mind how he would protect this world. He was going to save us all from ourselves. If the world was so heavily under his thumb it could barely breath, then nobody could fight. He and the Dark Legion enforced a strict law, so strict that trade fell and communication was heavily watched. Money and resources ran dry, but he could not see the harm it was doing if nobody was at war."

At this she stood up and went to look wistfully out of the window, before carrying on. He kept his eyes focused on her at all times.

"I tried to reach him, but by that time Princess Sally had disbanded the Freedom Fighters and I had returned here. There was not much we could do as fighters, and I could no longer get Shadow to listen to me. He used to, when we were younger, when we were closer. Sally married him soon after that, and taking up her place as Queen she set about trying to ease his tyrannical hold."

He searched his memory for a Sally, but apart from in passing he didn't know of a Sally standing out in the worlds he had visited already. She was clearly a big part of this Amy's timeline however.

"How much success did she have? I assume not a great deal?"

He could still only see the side if her face but he could see her expression fall. He knew this must be a sensitive subject but his curiosity was winning him over.

"Somewhat," Amy mumbled, "some trade was permitted. With money exchanging hands easier the poverty many faced began to ease. Some places wanted nothing to do with others, believing the King was right to shut down relationships, but most found relief. It seemed the Queen had some effect on him, but she couldn't reach the him I knew was still buried under that crown."

He cleared his throat before asking the next question.

"Were there no heirs?"

Amy turned to look at him, leaning herself against the windowsill.

"No. There were whispers the Queen refused any nightly visits. Others said she simply could not bare any children. I assumed the latter, knowing she would be trying to keep him happy however she could. But she and Sonic had the twins pretty quickly. I would swear she was pregnant walking down the aisle."

He detected the bitterness in her voice, but his mind was focussed on the lack of heirs. It would seem he was not the only Shadow who was infertile. That was if they even tried, but as any children of his would have right to the crown even if the King was overthrown, he believed the ex-King would have tried.

"How did we get from King Shadow to King Sonic?" he asked, changing the subject somewhat.

"A coup d'etat. Sonic just...appeared one day. Back from the dead. Knuckles worked for the King and he got them inside. Shadow was frozen and with him completely incapacitated, Sonic took over pretty much everything immediately."

Shadow got to his feet, "Frozen? Elaborate."

Amy raised her eyebrows at him. He rolled his eyes.

"Please."

She folded her arms but continued, "Lara-Su. Knuckles daughter. She is able to harness the power of the Chaos Emerald and uses it well. I don't know the ins and outs of the battle, but she used her skills to freeze him. He was kept in a life support chamber in the catacombs of Castle Mobius, and Sonic took over as King. Nearly everyone was delighted."

"That is not where this story ends."

She looked scornfully at him, "Keep your quills on. The Dark Legion all but fell, however there were some who believed Shadows regime was the right one. Lien-Da, who had lead the Dark Legion, freed him after a failed attempt on Sonics life. I am not sure what became of her, but she vanished that night. In that very same evening the King unleashed a terrible power on the world. Tichaos. It nearly destroyed Castle Mobius and would have carried on it's destruction had Sonia and Manik not saved the day."

"The twins?"

She nodded, "They destroyed the beast, with the help of Silver and and some of the children of my old friends." At this she smiled, "The next generation of Freedom Fighters. Lara-Su encased Tichaos once more. They never found Shadow and it was believed he had perished."

"He didn't present himself until he approached you?"

She lowered her gaze and turned to look out of the window. He walked over to stand by her and looked out over the moat and forest beyond. With cautious movement he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"This is why I do not believe he is a danger," she muttered, "he is no longer King, his followers have disbanded, and that surge in Chaos power that your superiors detected was most likely Tichaos. From my meetings with him I can tell you he is not the hedgehog he was. Neither is he the one of my youth, but I think I can make him that one again."

She looked up at him. Her wide jade eyes were sparkling lightly with tears and for a moment he was lost in another time and another life. She was speaking from the heart. That cloud over her soul was a guard against giving her heart to something else she might lose. Her actions in meeting the ex-King were foolish, but she longed to create a life she dreamed of. She was doing just as he was.

* * *

His eyes were not deceiving him. Though he was there in the forest, he was also in the castle, stood next to his property. He didn't know why another Shadow would be stupid enough to show his face in this world, but he was one of the few that new of other timelines and other worlds. He was not pleased with this turn of events, and he could not be sure this other Shadow wasn't stronger than he was.

He would have to bide his time. He would hunt her down while she was on her own and try and squeeze the truth out of her. With polite persuasion or with force would depend on how he felt at the time. Right now, he might very well have slain her on the spot.


	9. The Lives of Royalty

_Still in the past at the moment, but that will come to it's run in the next chapter._

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega, Archie, Penders etc_

* * *

Rouge paced back and forth before him. He had grown accustomed to her temperament over the years. She would put up a front even to her closest allies, but underneath she was as soft as a kitten.

"So you want me to tell the boss you are going deep undercover in the world you have been sent to investigate, even though you are aware what you were originally sent to look in to is no longer a threat?"

He nodded at her, "that's right."

She stopped her agitated movements and glared at him, "even though he already suspects something is unusual in the amount of time we spend 'undercover' in the world where you knocked boots with Amy."

"Which will hereby be called Universe B so you can stop giving it that infernal nickname!"

She shrugged, "Just because it was over a decade ago doesn't mean it isn't true. So why are you spending a couple of weeks unaccounted for in Universe C?"

Shadow crossed his arms over and sighed, "The creature that caused the surge in Chaos power last year has been subdued. The residual power the scanners are picking up now is shared between a few creatures."

"If it's shared," she hummed, "then none of them are dangerous enough to cause a rift through our Universe. Or any for that matter."

He stood, wishing to take the conversation no further, "I will remain to make sure that's the case."

She growled and him and ran to block the door.

"You better not be playing the hero for no reason again. You should be here doing your job," she snapped, pointing to the floor, "not running off on some fools errand."

He took her hand. The gesture was so unusual and so sudden her face fell and she gave in to her worry. She cared deeply for him, and would do anything to help him, but she was tired of losing him to his secrets.

"Rouge," he whispered, "it is time to start thinking of a life outside of G.U.N. Why not go spend a few days in Universe B, reacquaint with that echidna who adores you."

"But..." she started, but with a flash he was gone. She wished he couldn't do that so easily.

* * *

Amy had felt a little of the weight from her shoulders lift after spilling all the information she knew to the new Shadow. It had felt freeing to speak of the ex-King without fear of reprisals. She had been permitted to remember him with an old fondness and to speak of her meetings with him. She wandered through Mercia's capital with a new sense of life, little Anne trotting along next to her.

The public bowed as she passed them by, but she knew some of them were wary of her. Her fortune telling abilities were still incredibly rare. Though Lara-Su and many of the echidna tribes were able to use Chaos energy, her powers had no obvious source. Still, it wasn't like she could predict the future for certain, and a little card reading was harming nobody.

They were looking at dolls at a stall when she was approached. A trio of foxes walked up to her and trapped her where she stood. Amy had spent many years on the edge of danger; she pulled Anne close to her and tried to remain calm.

"Gentlemen, you are blocking our path. Please step aside."

The shortest of the three squared himself up to full height, "We just have a few questions m'lady. If you got a minute?"

She smiled carefully, "I am afraid not. I must get the Princess back to the castle."

"Oh don't you worry, you'll be on ya way quick enough. The Princess will make it home for her tea sure enough."

The little lop grasped on to Amy's leg tightly. Her fear sent waves of anger up through Amy but she would not be reduced to a fight lightly. She looked around them for a way out or signs of help but none were forthcoming.

"Very well," she snapped, "be quick."

The two muscle men remained silent while their leader courtesied, "most gracious Lady Rose. Your reputation precedes you."

"And what reputation would that be, my good sir?"

"Why, that the Lady Rose is generous with her time. Anyone who is in need of indulgence need only look her way. The poor, the sick...the overthrown."

Amy took in a deep breath, "Your very words are treason."

The fox laughed cruelly, "Is that not the pot calling the kettle black?"

"Out with it!" she snapped, moving Anne behind her, "what is it you believe I have done."

His lip curled in to a snarl, "you have been frequenting with the tyrant, Shadow."

"By frequenting," one of the bulky pair finally spoke, "he means you been doing it in the woods."

"How DARE you!" Amy screamed, unable to control her temper, "I shall see you in the dungeons for this slander."

She called her Piko hammer to hand, but used it to shield herself and Anne. She couldn't attack and leave the child alone, so she remained stood where she was. All three foxes produced daggers and pointed them at her.

"Don't matter if we are hanged for this!" the leader cried, "we aint letting him take over Mercia. We take you out, you can't help him no more!"

With a quick bat of her trusty hammer, she had floored one of her attackers and left a gap in their ranks.

"Anne run!" she cried, and out the corner of her eye she watched the child run. Distracted the lead fox managed to swipe at her, slicing a line in her arm. She yelped but it did not hinder her.

Darting to one side with a speed she hadn't used in many years, she took out the other massive fox with one blow. The leader bolted immediately, but her stomach dropped as she realised he was making after Anne.

"NO!" she screamed.

He went flying. With invisable force the leader was thrown in to one of the stalls opposite, and with a sickening crunch she realised he had taken the full force to the head. He landed amongst the debris of the stall in a heap, dead.

Her hammer was still in hand. Whatever had hit him had not been a physical force, but the way the terrified onlookers stared at her gave away she was the attacker. In her moment of shock she had forgotten little Anne, and she called for her in blind panic. The wounded foxes and the fatality buried under splintered wood were forgotten as her eyes desperately scanned the area.

"My lady!" a voice cried, "I have her."

Amy spun around to find Bow Sparrow stood behind her, Anne tucked carefully under one of his wings. Bow was loyal to the King and the crown and her heart started beating again at the sight of him. She grabbed hold of Anne and held on to the little girl tight. The purity of children was never to be overlooked, and the lop hugged her back.

"Away to the castle Lady Rose. Make haste. We will clear this mess," Bow said, ushering her away.

Not wanting Anne to see any more violence she ran for the safety of the castle. She had never believed that the safety of her family would ever be in question again. She could look after herself if she needed to, but perhaps she did need the new Shadow around after all.

Rob returned from the dungeon and walked in to Amy's quarters without seeking permission. At any other time he might have found such an action improper, but he was in too much of a rush to stand on ceremony.

Orla was tending to the wound on Amy's arm, while the Lady herself was trying to search for something on her computer with one hand. The otter was snapping at her patient in frustration but Amy didn't seem to notice either of them in the room.

"My LADY if I do not stitch you up correctly you are going to be left with a scar. Hold still."

"I am holding still Orla. I need to look something up."

"Can it not wait?"

"NO!"

As Amy turned round to protest loudly at Orlas fussing she finally spotted Robert stood in the doorway. His expression was hard to read, so she sat back quietly and allowed herself to be sewn up. Her ears drooped under her cousins stare. But he stood watching until Orla was finished, and with a bow she left the two royal hedgehogs to it.

"Are you hurt?" Rob asked quietly as he walked further in to the room.

"It was a clean cut," no answering him completely, "it will heal quickly. How is Anne?"

"She trembles still, but she is safely in her Fathers arms."

Amy felt a tear slide down her face, unaware one was even brewing. She opened her mouth to speak again, but Rob had wrapped his arms around her and buried the words before she could say them. The tears began to flow freely.

"Dear cousin do not weep," he chocked, holding back the tears of his own, "you protected Anne. She was in no danger when Bow befell the scene, nay he simply stopped her falling in harms way."

"There should have been no danger to begin with!" she cried, looking up at him, "what has he told you? What did he hear?"

Rob released her from his embrace and took her hand, "He heard not what they spoke, but dearest cousin, the rumours have reached us in the last few moments. Those that witnessed what transpired have scattered and spoken."

Amy let her head drop again and she pulled her hand away. She could hear the suspicion in his voice and her anger began to bubble once more.

"If it spreads like that mouth to mouth, I dare not look online any more," she grumbled.

"I care not for technology, but rest assured these false accusations shall be met with swift action and my personal condemnation!"

"No, Rob, you must not get involved."

He stared at her for a moment, before he laughed.

"I will not have my family, nor my Kingdom, brought in to question my Lady. I shall be involved."

Amy stood up and began to walk around the room like a caged animal. She felt like the walls around her were consuming her at all times, but now they bared down like a collapsing deck of cards. She had never felt like royalty, and the responsibilities of being part of a household with such authority filled her with apprehension at the best of times.

"Rob it doesn't matter what the truth is! If you stand by my side through this then the folk of Mercia may turn against you!"

"There was an attempt on your life!" he barked, "I will not have them believe I will not crush those who act so rashly."

"What if it were true though Robert? How would you feel then?"

The King faltered. He glared at her through confused eyes, trying to decipher her words in a way that did not accuse her of anything. She was speaking out of fright, but he was there out of love.

"I am aware he was once a good hedgehog, and once had you so wished I would have given you my blessing," he mumbled, fearful he would be overheard, "but he is nought but a villain now. I do not rule your heart, but I rule this land while King Sonic rules us all. It is he who has decreed the ex-King a traitor who must be brought before him. If you were aware of his whereabouts..."

Amy held her hand up, "I am aware of all of this already Rob. I do not know where he is, and rumours that I lie with him are nothing but a juicy scandal that never happened."

"Then this is where I leave you dearest cousin, for I shall go and spread the word that you are innocent."

Amy held her breath in until the door shut. Letting out a heavy sigh she walked over to her dressing room, where the other Shadow had been waiting for her. His timing had been poor but he had not been seen.

"Think you have enough information now?" she scornfully asked him.

"You were attacked!" he growled, as if he had been holding in a breath himself.

"I noticed that too!" she laughed with a mocking tone.

"You have been careless in your meetings with him. You must have been seen."

She sniffed haughtily, "I have not been seen with him. I can detect when people are close by. I spend time alone and there is rumour he has been seen. Gossip has put two and two together."

He grasped on to her arm and pulled her toward him, "Gossip should not get you killed."

She looked down at his hand until he let go. There was a wobble in his voice that softened her temper. It was hard to look at him when he looked so much like her Shadow, so perhaps the same was to be said for him.

"I'm not going to waste my time on him any longer," she breathed, placing a hand carefully against his cheek, "I thought I could reach him. Save him."

Shadow nodded, "If anyone could, it would be you."

Amy tilted her head, "how do you know that?"

"Some things never change."

She kissed him. They were both so shocked by the sudden action that neither moved. Amy could feel the heat rising in her face as her brain caught up with her body and she realised what she was doing. She didn't want to run away and humiliate them both. Just as she was about to pull away, his hand came up and his thumb and forefinger pinched her chin lightly. It was careful affection.

As their lips parted she spoke words she feared might cause a rift between them.

"You love her?"

He frowned and pulled away, but she would not be denied her answers when she had given him the information he had sought.

"There is an Amy in your life isn't there? You love her?"

He turned away, "this information is irrelevant."

She moved around him until she was back in his eyeline.

"This is why you have come back even though you know Tichaos has been safely controlled. You are putting yourself in his place."

He locked his eyes on to her, "don't be so foolish."

"You think he can be saved. Your Amy is with your Sonic, I know it. If you can't have her, you want him to have me!"

There was a flash and he vanished. She began to laugh at the sheer absurdity of her day so far. She had not been seen with the ex-King, so she would track him down again and get this over and done with. She needed to sort out what she was going to do with Shadow the Hedgehog.

It didn't seem to matter which.


	10. The Last Petal Falls

_Sorry for the delay. Hello to all my new followers, very nice to see people adding this story to their watch list._

 _We finally finish the "flashback" portion of the story. Obviously certain moments and events are only known to the characters in the 'other' universe, but as they are integral to the story I have written them even though Shadow/the current world crew is unaware of them._

 _All will become clear as we go on from here. Hopefully_

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega and Archie crew. Brant, Orla and Nula are my creations._

* * *

The debate about how well she would handle the events in public was decided for her when Orla wrapped her up in a hood before she left the castle. Amy had protested at first, but the pained look in the otters eye quiet her resolve. Deep down she was frightened of what might befall the Kingdom and her family if things remained as they were.

She would take the risk to meet the ex-King once more. She had read the cards that morning, and she could feel that he was close by. The distinction between he and the Shadow from the other universe was now much stronger, and she would know which she were conversing with. She knew for certain that nobody had seen her with either of them; that it was simply Chinese whispers and her history that had made those foxes presume what they did. All the same, she would hole up in the castle for a couple of months and make sure the subjects of her cousins Kingdom knew it. If anything were to happen to her loved ones, life would not be worth living. Rob would not exile her, even for their own safety, so she would have to take charge.

With drab, pedestrian clothing and a hood that covered her head well, Amy walked casually through the village surrounding the castle. Further away from the grounds itself, Knottingham was a far more modern affair, but the centre point remained as it had for centuries. It was symbolic rather than practical, but the people had rallied to their King and to the grounds of the castle in times of crisis so they did not change it's image.

She darted through the narrow streets and back alley ways she had played in as a young child until she found herself on the edge of the forest. She paused for a moment to see if she could sense eyes upon her, but all she felt was the lingering presence of the ex-King ahead of her. He was like a ghost that remained by her side but out of reach. The other Shadow did not linger in the same way, but she supposed when he was gone he was well and truly gone. The King, he was part of her world.

She walked for thirty minutes or more until she found a small clearing by the edge of the Never Lake. It was a vast expanse of water, and a beautiful spot as well as still being the spot where Little Planet appeared each year. For now, on a grey day in the middle of of May, it was simply a quiet and private location.

She sat on the bank by the water and looked down at her reflection. The years had been fair to her but she was not the young woman she was. She wondered if the Amy of the other Shadows world was still young and beautiful. He had mentioned they ran at different passes in time, though how many years below her this other Amy was she did not know. She believed in her heart that the other Amy was with their worlds Sonic, and she felt a warm connection to their love that was so far away.

How that Amy had managed to steal the heart of not only Sonic but Shadow too was a mystery. The King and the new Shadow were similar but certainly not the same, so perhaps the other her was a more pro-active woman. Perhaps she was sweeter, perhaps there was little in the way of competition.

Perhaps that was why she had kissed the new Shadow. If just for one moment she could escape from her world and imagine a life beyond it, she would take it. The need for excitement in her life quashed her logical thoughts, and it was how she had ended up in the company of the King so often.

The EX-King.

For a moment she believed the sight of him in the water was her minds eye, but as she gathered herself together she knew he stood beside her. It was certainly her Shadow, devoid of his cloak and his crown now. He looked no different to the hedgehog she knew growing up. Her heart skipped a beat, out of apprehension or affection it had grown hard to tell. He was not to blame for the attempt on her life, but she still felt an overwhelming need to detach from him.

"I saw what they did," he said, regarding her mirrored image as she did his.

"You were in the walls of the village?" she snapped, "you utter fool."

He dropped to his knees and wrapped an arm around her neck. By instinct she went to claw at him to free herself, when she realised he was not trying to harm her. He was embracing her.

"I've missed you, Amy," he whispered in to the back of her neck, "communication might be intercepted. I hid in plain sight."

She bit her lip, "the ones who attacked me, did you hear what they said?"

"I did."

"Then," she started, trying to hook a hand around his wrist to release his hold, "you will know why we cannot carry on like this."

"On the contrary, I wish for it all the more," he purred, as she felt his lips connect with the side of her neck.

With a sudden burst of strength she prised herself out of his grip and twisted away from him. In her haste to get away she forgot her proximity to the waters edge and her heel slipped off the bank.

She didn't fall far. She was dipped backward so far the ends of her quills touched the waters surface, but his supportive hand at the small of her back stopped her crashing in to the lake. With a movement smooth as silk he eased her back in to an upright position and for a moment they stood nose to nose in silence.

"I'm sorry."

His words almost caused her to fall in to the water again. In his fierce red eyes she could see a melancholy she hadn't known for a couple of decades. He downcast his eyes and stepped away from her, looking at his hands as if they were detached from him.

"I didn't want to interfere, but for a moment I thought I was going to lose you," he mumbled, clasping his fingers together, "it was not my intention to kill him. I reacted without hindrance."

"It was...it was you?" she stuttered. It was a twisted moment to laugh, but she smiled in plain relief that she had not taken a life after all. There was no logical way it could have been her, but until that point she had to assume it had been. Shadow, of course, had plenty blood on his hands already.

"I could not reveal myself of course. If I were to be seen..."

"It would be bad," she nodded, "not that you don't deserve bad of course."

He frowned and shook his head, "I am aware. It has taken me a while to accept that my actions over the years were misguided. Out here," he said, turning to look in to the forest, "I have had the opportunity to take stock. I have been alive for so long...without living one day of it."

She stared hard at his back. In build he was so similar to Sonic, if an outsider were to hear of what he was capable of they may have dismissed it. He still looked young, but his fur was lacking it's velveteen sheen and his poise was slumped.

"You can change that still," she said.

He looked back toward her over his shoulder, "so can you."

She placed a hand on her heart, fearing to leave it open it would betray her. She was weak to her need to save him and to her dreams of a life beyond her royal blood. She dreamed of adventuring again, fighting by the side of the man she loved and saving her friends on a daily basis. The chance for all that was walking over to her and taking her hand. When he kissed her she fell in to the moment and her senses gave way to the taste of his lips and the sound of her heartbeat in her ears. His strong arms enveloped her and for a second she was a teenager again.

The other Shadow flashed across her minds eye. She had accused him of using her to replace his Amy, but in truth she was willing that to happen. She broke away from the ex-King and rested her hands on the soft, snowy fur on his chest.

"This is something you will have to do alone," she croaked, "I will not reveal you Shadow, but you must leave this place."

He gripped on to her shoulders, "I am no threat to you Rose. I am no threat to anyone any more. Let's go erase the past and start a new life. I want you with me!"

She shook her head and let a sob escape her throat, "I can't pretend I don't want to Shadow. But if we were seen, if we were caught...I fear for my family."

He swallowed hard, "you have a duty to your King."

She didn't know which King he referred to. His voice was too quiet to tell if he was telling her to fulfil his desires, or to protect her cousin, or to run to Sonic and tell him of her treason. She did not answer him, and he turned to leave without anything else to say. With his exit she bid a silent farewell to him and to the wonderful dream she was giving up.

He disappeared in to the darkness and her heart fell in to shadow.

* * *

They were stood face to face, staring at each other as if they were a reflection in a mirror. The ex-King did not react surprised, and Shadow knew at that moment his presence must have been detected before hand.

"You're taller than me," the ex-King sneered.

"I'm older than you," Shadow replied.

His twin raised an eyebrow, "Being ageless, it doesn't really matter if you've existed longer."

Silence fell between them, with nothing but the sound of the breeze through the leaves rustling overhead. They were stood at the foot of a grand tree, and high above them was the remains of the old Freedom Fighters headquarters, abandoned long ago when King Rob returned and Eggman had been defeated.

"What is it you want with Amy Rose?" Shadow inquired.

"I could ask you the same," was his answer, "given this is my world and my Amy."

Shadow snorted, "she is not property."

"Then why are you trying to steal her away?"

With motions that matched perfectly they folded their arms defensively across their chests. There was the subtlest crackle in the air as power charged underneath the surface. They stared each other down like wild males during a rut.

"I have no plans to remove her from this world, but I am here to ascertain what threat you pose to the outer universes, and to this world."

The ex-King gave a flicker of amusement, "Are you the hero of your world?"

Shadow narrowed his eyes, "I will protect what I need to."

The ex-King let his arms fall and nodded his head, "I felt that was my duty to. I fear Amy has told you of my exploits over the years. They were the actions of a hedgehog trying to protect his world. The way I conducted myself was...misguided."

Shadow listened for sincerity in his voice, but he knew from his own it was hard to detect.

"I burned my anger out," he carried on, "I seethed and raged when I was beaten by Sonic's children, and when my thoughts went dark with how I might exact my revenge on them, I hit my lowest. That was how I ended up hear, near the one being on this forsaken blot of soil who might sooth my inner demons."

Shadow flicked an ear, "you are very candid about this."

"I've been waiting for you. No point in wasting time hiding anything. You want to protect your world from me, and I am here to tell you I never wanted to harm this one."

The ex-King sighed deeply and turned around, exposing his back to show he was no longer on the defensive. Shadow let his arms fall too.

"The Master Emerald is far from here, the Chaos Emeralds are scattered and guarded. My crown was taken from me, I have no heirs to claim right to the throne. As for Amy...I know her heart is true, but it belongs to her family before it could ever belong to me. I will bother her no more."

Shadow walked over to stand by his reflections side. The ex-King looked tired of the fight, of his very existence. But he would live forever if he so wished, and would need to find a place in the world.

"In the decades that lay before you it is possible to slowly gain their trust. The world will always fear us, but we must still exist within it, so we shall do what we can to save them."

With a small nod from the ex-King, Shadow felt it was time to leave before he pushed his luck. He would return the following night to thank Amy for her help, then leave this place of hurt behind him.

* * *

The royal armoury was well equipped, but ill prepared for the onslaught of a temperamental female with a Piko hammer. She had settled upon smashing her weapon against a thick oak trunk that was used to practice sword fighting, splintering it to nothing wider than pencils in a matter of minutes. When she finally stopped swinging she let out a wail of despair and fell to her knees amongst the ruin.

Orla fell next to her and tired to hoist her out of the dagger sharp shards of wood, but Amy was dead weight. Defeated, the otter wrapped an arm around her ward.

"My Lady, please be careful, you have already reopened your wound," she urged, "I do not wish to see you hurt any longer."

"The hurt is INSIDE Orla," Amy cried, tears clouding her angry eyes, "how can...after I...what I gave..."

She screamed again and fell in to the bosom of her old friend and wept. What little strength she had within her seeped out within her salty tears, and she cried until her body was spent and her spirit was quiet. Not once did she feel the pain in her bleeding knees.

"Lady Rose," Orla sighed after an eternity, "you are a woman of reason. The King has come up with an idea that will keep your reputation clear and the kingdom protected."

"By marrying me off. By using patriarchal, outdated, ideals from ancient times," the pink hedgehog sighed.

"Bow Sparrow will make an excellent husband," Orla soothed.

Amy got to her feet suddenly, brushing off the broken wood from her bloody limbs.

"You are right Orla. He is a noble man, of good blood. The Kingdom sees him as a mighty protector, the Kings most trusted ally. He will become a Lord and I shall be his dutiful until my dying day."

Orla shook her head, "Sparrow marries you to protect you and his King. He does not demand your love, and he will not. But as far as the subjects of this Kingdom will be concerned, you are betrothed to your beloved and most certainly not in the arms of a traitor such as Shadow!"

Amy laughed, a bitter husky laugh from the back of her throat, "my engagement will be announced in a few days. I am still Amy Rose until then, and I shall live as such."

When Shadow appeared to say his goodbye the following night, Amy told him nothing of her news. She knew he loved his Amy, she knew she loved her Shadow, but for one night they could play make believe that they were both with the ones they truly wanted. When she woke the following morning he was gone and she donned her royal gowns and her royal demeanour, ready to become Lady Sparrow and leave her dreams in the dust. She would never read the cards again.

* * *

 _Present Day_

Sonic was walking in a giant circle. With each step he took, Nula would run between his legs, giggling to her hearts content. Brant watched from his vantage point on his Fathers knees, making the odd small coo of approval.

"Okay so to be clear, your lingering feelings for my wife lead you in to the arms of...another Amy who you believe was in love with another Shadow because another Sonic is married to a squirrel," Sonic stammered angrily.

"I believe Queen Sally was a chipmunk, but..."

"Ah yes," Sonic butted in, "Sonic is KING. Shadow WAS King but after trying to destroy the world with...gem stones and water...he was banished. YOU went to challenge HIM because you work for a Government Agency in ANOTHER universe and they suspected he might be trouble."

"You are simplifying it a little..."

"As it turns out your one night of impulse has given you a son. A son who is here somehow, while his Mother who isn't my wife but somehow is kind of my wife..."

"WIFE has a NAME"

They all turned to look at the voice approaching them through the trees. Amy strolled in to the clearing, her eyes visibly tear stained but her face beaming as her daughter ran to her. Amy scooped Nula up and tickled her belly, causing the child to squeal in delight, breaking the tension in the air.

"Amy, I'm sorry," Sonic started, walking over to her, "it's a lot to take in."

Amy shook her head and passed Nula over to her Father, "Sonic if you think this is hard why don't you think about what the hedgehog you've just been yelling at is going through."

She walked over to Shadow and took the baby of his knees and cradled him in her arms. Shadow stood slowly as well, not wanting to get too close to her out of shame and out of respect. The night that Brant was conceived was a mistake, but it happened out of love, and now he would fix the broken bonds.

"You didn't get round to telling us how you ended up wounded," Sonic said quietly as he walked over to them. Nula reached her arms out to Shadow, and with a quick glance of permission from Sonic, he cradled the little girl close to him.

"I went back." he started, "Though we had established the ex-King was no longer a threat, I did wonder what he was doing with the eternal life stretched out before him. I wanted to know Lady Rose was well too of course, but I had no intention of meeting with her. I had interrupted her life enough, and she would not forget the ex-King while I was there reminding her of him."

He held Nula forward so she could tickle Brants cheeks, while the male hoglet snuggled further in to Amy's arms.

"This was a month ago. I teleported to the place in the forest I had met with the ex-King, but I had barely materialised when an arrow shot through my shoulder, just missing my heart. My body was then frozen, not something easily done, but my senses were jumbled and I could not tell who was around me. The arrow was left in me and I could not heal. I know I was moved, in to a jail as it turned out, but the passage of time was lost on me. Then out of nowhere the powers holding me broke, and as well as I could I removed the arrow and teleported back here. That was when Nula found me."

She looked up at him at the sound of her name, and lifted a hand so it rested on Shadows cheek. He nuzzled her palm with his nose and she beamed.

"We need to go back there then!" Sonic declared, making a heroic pose.

"You will help me?" Shadow inquired.

The blue hedgehog took in a deep breath, "We...have a lot to discuss, but that can come after we have rescued the Princess locked away in a castle."

"What do you plan to do?" Amy asked, with a raise of her eyebrows, "or is this a good old fashioned 'all guns blazing' type plan where we hope for the best?"

"Is there any other kind of plan?"

"Yes Sonic," Amy sung, "but with Shadows permission I think we should bring our friends up to speed, just with what they need to know. Rouge especially. Reuniting this little one with his Mother is top priority, but it sounds like there could be danger."

Shadow nodded slowly, "she isn't going to like me very much after this, but I will tell Rouge myself. Tell the rest of your troops what you must. I feel they shall not approve either."

Amy placed a hand carefully on his shoulder, "then you need to start to try and get to know them better."


	11. Twin Plans

_First of all I am very sorry for the delay. I've fallen in to the trap of working on a few things at once, and I have fought to clear another story I started before I could get back to this one. Luckily that is now done and I can concentrate on this piece in-between arts and edits._

 _Shorter chapter to set us up for the second half of this tale_

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega. Brant and Nula are my creations._

* * *

Tails had shown Shadow and Rouge to his old workshop. He mostly used it to store old vehicles, now out of commission to either be rescued or pulled apart for scrap. The lack of items that could be lifted was a blessing, and the white bat threw anything and everything she could get her hands on.

"You were sneaking back to that world for a girl?! Deep undercover in Universe C were you? What kind of euphemism is that?" she screamed, throwing a wrench.

Her aim was off and he didn't even need to flinch, "It wasn't like that. I was still investigating the ex-King."

Rouge threw her arms up in the air, "Which job was on the side? Your work as an agent or getting busy?"

He shook his head, "I told you, it was once, and it was a moment that shouldn't have happened. That does not mean the child is any less important to me."

Moaning she rubbed at her forehead, "Trust me Shadow, I'm well aware what it means to you to find out you aren't infertile. I just...I wish you could have told me."

Her anger vanished in to the air around them and she looked sad all at once. Though he was used to these changes of mood in her, he was still at a loss as to how to handle them. She allowed so few to see her vulnerable that he knew he stood out amongst the many, but they did not love each other in the way she deserved. He could not give her the affection she secretly craved.

"The more you knew the more chance you could get in trouble with the bosses. But now you know everything, and I'm asking you for a big commitment here."

She raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

He took in a deep breath, "I think it is time to hang up our uniform."

She squinted at him, "You...you think we should quit?"

"I realise your job is important to you Rouge, but don't you think it's time we started living? How many years have you dedicated to G.U.N? To Team Dark?"

"I dedicated my life," she replied, "I could not carry on as a thief and I knew it, but as a spy I could still do everything I loved without winding up incarcerated."

He shook his head, "That was before we found this universe. You formed a bond with Knuckles of our world, and you cannot tell me you aren't sweet on the one of this world."

"So what if I am," she snapped, "what is the plan here? One last job, you rescue Amy from Universe C and you raise the child here in Universe B...and we both leave our world foever."

"Why not?"

With her arms folded she tapped her foot angrily, twitching her left wing as if she were about to take off. He could see the cogs whirring in her brain, fighting to dominate the feelings in her heart. She was hard as the diamonds she loved but could break like carbon.

"Everything okay in here?"

They both looked toward the doorway where Knuckles stood sheepishly. By size alone he should have been an imposing figure, but his kindness radiated from him and he was softer than the Knuckles of their world. More to the point, he was not a guardian here, and his heart was free to care for whatever he decided was most important. They all knew he had been attracted to Rouge, as many men were, but he had respected her boundaries and got to know her.

"Yes, it's fine," Rouge said smiling at him, flashing Shadow a quick scowl.

"Err Amy and Sonic told us everything," he mumbled, staring at his feet, "we wanted to say...we're...GUYS?!"

Tails shuffled in to view, dragging Sticks with him by her Tail. The fox too looked full of guilt, while Sticks jutted out her bottom lip as if this was painful for her. She was so often right, she didn't like being wrong.

"We're sorry," Tails called in a clear voice, "we let our old prejudices take over and we judged you harshly."

"With good reason."

"Ignore Sticks, she doesn't mean it."

Shadow felt a little overwhelmed by their words, and clearing his throat he nodded in thanks. He received a few grins in return.

"We want to help," Knuckled beamed, his wandering eye flicking towards Rouge as he spoke, "reunite the baby with his Mom."

"This Lady Rose," Sticks interjected, "how do we know bringing her here won't blow up our world?"

"She isn't from a parallel world. Like us it is a different Universe entirely, running on a different time scale," Shadow replied.

"Is she younger or older than our Amy?" Tails asked.

"Older."

Sticks laughed, "Not that age matters to someone who doesn't age huh?"

Rouge walked over to Shadow and placed a hand on his shoulder, before turning back to the trio.

"Shadow is ageing, and he isn't immortal," she sighed, "it's a much slower process, we believe roughly a decade to us is one year to him, but he will grow old. But now," she said smiling, turning back to look at him, "he will leave a part of himself behind."

* * *

"Do you ever learn to cope with that smell?"

"Breath through your mouth Rouge."

"How can something so small produce such a smell?"

"You were a baby once too Knuckles, you would have done just the same."

"Not me, I was allowed to go where an when I wanted. Learned to dig a pit first the hard way."

Amy screamed in frustration, "I am trying to teach SHADOW to change a nappy, not the rest of you, would you give us five minutes?"

Shadow watched them shuffle away with quiet amusement. They had all already taken to his son and had now accepted his story. They were a loyal group to the last, and spending his life in this idle paradise couldn't have seemed like a more logical step. The way Amy breezed about the baby whilst also juggling an attention seeking toddler amazed him, and he knew Lady Rose would be much the same. He heart would have broken the night she parted with their son.

"Don't tell Rouge or she'll never have pups, but no you never adapt to the smell," she whispered.

"Do you think she will stay here?" he asked, "it is her life, but I believe I would miss her greatly if she chose to remain with G.U.N."

Amy buttoned up the grow on Brant and bundled him in to her arms.

"Hard to say," she muttered, "I know how much she likes it here, but whether or not she could lay back and chill forever I don't know."

He made a hum that was nothing more than a blank response. Taking Brant from Amy he took the warmed bottle watched the child feed silently. His midnight fur shimmered with amethyst in the light, his crimson eyes half closed as he drank the milk greedily.

"What about you?" Amy asked, "is this world really the one for you?"

The ebony hedgehog shook his head, "What I want no longer matters. Perhaps when the child is an adult, and I am still young too, we can explore together. But he is my priority for as long as he and his Mother lives."

Amy smiled and hooked her hand in to his arm, leading him back towards the group who were waiting patiently. He noticed that Nula was playing with Rouge, the little girl fascinated by the bats impressive wings. With a flap a small gust of wind would flutter through Nulas spines and she giggled loudly, clapping with delight.

"So what's the big plan Dadow?" Sonic inquired, slightly mocking tone in his voice.

Shadow chose to ignore it, "It is likely whoever attacked me believed me to be the ex-King. I'm going to take advantage of this by taking Sonic with me. I do not believe they will attack if I am seen with who they believe to be their King."

"From what you said I would guess the arrow was shot by the Lady's cousin, Rob," Amy piped up, sitting next to her husband, "but who had enough power to freeze you?"

"There are only a few creatures in that world with that kind of power," Rouge answered for him, "including the ex-King himself. Apart from him they are all on King Sonics side, so as suggested if Shadow is spotted with Sonic he should be able to talk before he's attacked."

"Sticks, I required your company too."

"Sticks?" they all said in unison.

Shadow nodded, placing the now empty bottle down and Brant started to fall asleep in his arms.

"Sticks is a stranger in that Universe. I require her to scout ahead as she can hide in plain sight. At present I have no idea where the Lady is, but it is most likely she is still in her home Kingdom. My best guess is the people believe Brant to be the son of their Shadow, making her a traitor to her King."

"But even a Sonic who isn't me wouldn't imprison her, I'm sure of it," Sonic rumbled, uncomfortable with what he was hearing, the words sounding like an accusation even if not about him directly.

"I believe you are right," Shadow agreed, keeping his voice low and Brant snored quietly, "King Robert has probably hidden her. I plan to meet with both Kings, clear her name for the sake of her family, and bring her back here."

"Isn't Sonic going to be a bit freaked out by...Sonic?" Tails asked.

"He has travelled different worlds himself so the Lady told me. If anyone were to believe us, it is him. It is getting to him that will be the challenge."

"What about us?" Knuckled jumped in.

"Stay here."

"What?" Amy snapped, causing Nula to jump in surprise and throw herself at her Father.

"What?" Amy repeated, quieter, "stay here and hope for the best?"

"If the Lady is in danger there then you will be too," Shadow sighed, "and as we are still unaware how they got here, I need some of you on this side to guard the children until we return."

"I can't just wait here while you..." Amy started, but when Nula took hold of the hem of her dress the arrogant bravado in Amy died down. She was a Mother first and she always would be.

"I'm sure Tails has equipment to scout the area for unusual power, and Rouge and Knuckles are the strongest fighters should any one come your way," Shadow finished.

They all nodded except for Amy, who picked up her daughter and started to carry her away. As she passed Shadow she whispered in his ear.

"Don't lose my husband," she whispered in a harsh growl, "and don't come back without the Lady either."

He raised an eyebrow at her, "you aren't going to follow us are you?"

She snorted, giving a small chuckle, "I'm not that Amy any more."


	12. Fate of the Lady

_First of all, a quick explanation if anyone has found me via Inkbunny. In THIS story, based in the Boom Universe, Nula and Brant are not related. Brant is Amy's son, but she is an Amy from a different Universe (the 30 Years Later comic to be precise). The stories where Nula and Brant are twins will only be posted on Inkbunny and have nothing to do with this story._

 _Okay again I am sorry for the delay. This chapter was going to contain more but it then would have been too long so I have split it. Thanks to my readers and reviewers for sticking with me even though I'm not updating as often as I should._

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega_

 _Nula and Brant are mine_

* * *

After spending years believing she would grow out of her clumsy faze, it had come as a heavy blow to Nula to find out she would never have correct coordination. She was sure, once they started testing her, the doctors would find a magical cure to aid her balance and she could run as fast as her Father. But that was before they discovered the source of her equilibrium issue.

She had no memory of damaging her ear, but since the age of five the muscles controlling it's direction were weak and the external flesh had collapsed flat. Mom told her she had fallen in to a thorn bush and caught it, but Nula always felt in her heart that this was a lie. Now and then her ear stung with no apparent explanation, like it was remembering the event that she could not. It made her feel fearful and she would break out in to a cold sweat.

Unable to hear the world as clearly as she should in her right ear, she would never have the stability on her feet to stay running at the pace she was capable of. When she had been told the news she tried to run from the scene, only to shamefully fall down the steps of the doctors office. Pushing Uncle Knuckles strong hands away she had stormed off, finding herself overlooking the ocean from her favourite vantage point. Ivo had shown it to her years ago.

"I could snoop on your meddlesome parents on the beach and they had no idea I was up here," he had told her, "the angle of the cliff face acts as a shield."

She was still young, but by her age her parents and their friends had left the embrace of their families and were starting their own lives. She still had no idea what she was going to do with hers, and the idea of moving out in to the big wide world still terrified her. The one thing she knew was that she was the daughter of Sonic the Hedgehog. The only child of the fastest thing alive, and she would never be able to run as freely as he did. No heroic rescues, no races, no nothing. It was as if she was left out at sea while others swam to shore, leaving her to feel useless and alone.

Now she was watching the sun set on a peaceful day, overlooking that endless ocean, and dreaming what could be on the other side. She had shed all the tears she could muster and she was now plucking up the courage to go home. Her Mothers temper, her Fathers desire to flee from emotions, were a terrible combination. She wasn't sure where her pride had come from, perhaps her Aunt Rouge who to this day would never admit she lost an argument.

Taking a deep breath she stood up quickly before she could lose her courage again, but after sitting down for so long the sudden rise sent her head spinning. She felt herself stumble toward the precipice before her world when black.

The screaming pain in her ear woke her up. With a whimper her hand shot up to the side of her head, her eyes fighting to open against the glare of the setting sun. A darkness passed over her eyes and she was able to focus her retinas, a gloved palm protecting her eyes.

"What...happened?" she grumbled, wincing as a jolt shot through her ear again.

"You fainted," came a deep but youthful voice, the face hidden behind the hand shielding her orbs.

"I...the cliff," she stammered, "I fell."

"You nearly did. You shouldn't stand in such a dangerous place if you're prone to passing out."

The accusation in his voice chipped away at her patience and she slapped the hand away. Even with the sun behind him she could see the red streak in his quills and the ruby eyes scowling at her.

It wasn't Shadow. It was the boy she had dreamed about. The one her parents had told her was just her imagination. The one she felt was close by even when she knew she was alone.

The one who had destroyed her poor ear and her life.

* * *

She felt it was too private a moment to observe, so Amy left Shadow alone to say goodbye to his son. Quiet as always, Brant has nestled in to the fur on his Fathers chest, burying his tiny knuckles in his mouth as a substitute meal. She ached for the lost Lady to be here with them. Whatever were to happen between her and Shadow, the baby deserved a chance at a normal life. She was willing to give up her Shadow to that world if it meant Brant had his Father to raise him.

She looked toward her husband and her daughter; she was doing laps of their friends while he chased her. Her speed seemed to be increasing day by day, but her ability to control it was growing also. Sonic wasn't just fast, his reflexes were second to none and his senses were stronger to be able to judge his surroundings at speed. Still developing it would be a few years till Nula could predict danger as well as Sonic, but at the very least Amy hoped she didn't develop a taste for finding it.

"Okay, one regal cloak," Sticks announced, strolling on to the scene. She flung the red fabric over Sonic, who adjusted it with some amusement.

"Where did you get this?" Amy asked her, fiddling with the collar.

Stick stuck out her bottom lip, "Garments such as these only belong to the Mayor while he is the Mayor, so I figure they're technically public property."

Rouge chuckled, "woman after my own heart."

"Don't I get a crown and sceptre too?"

"Your ego doesn't require them," Shadow mumbled, strolling over and passing Brant to Amy, "you resemble the King enough to keep us out of harms way."

Sonic scowled "ego...?"

"We're taller than our counterparts, and in your case much younger," Shadow carried on addressing Sonic, "so I wish to avoid interaction as much as possible."

"Big change there then," Sonic smirked.

"Oh I wanna go too," Knuckled grumbled, "can't I wear a disguise?"

"I would need to tear your eye out and have it replaced with a mechanical one," Shadow answered him.

"Oh," Knuckles coughed, "I just thought I could stick on a cool cowboy hat or something."

"No letting your curiosity get the better of you," Amy scolded, giving Sonic a quick kiss on the cheek, "that goes for you too Sticks."

"You ain't keeping me there for long," Sticks growled, "last time I ended up in the middle of a war with a flying, yellow version of Sonic."

They all laughed apart from Shadow. Sticks pouted even harder.

"Let's get going," Shadow sighed, "I want to get Lady Rose out of danger sooner rather than later."

He took hold of Sonic and Sticks arms, and with a last look at Universe B, he teleported them to all to the heart of Deerwood Forest.

* * *

Sonic whipped around to gather their surroundings before anything could jump out at them. The forest was dark and chilly compared to the world he just came from and he wrapped his cloak around his arms. Sticks was pointing her ears in all directions but didn't even seem to notice the drop in temperature.

"Place is deserted," she stated with a shrug, "you sure this is where you got captured last time?"

Shadow was still scanning the place himself, "roughly. They caught me off guard. They know the forest well."

"Yea well I know how to hide well and there ain't nobody buried in the bushes."

"So what is the plan then Shads?" Sonic questioned, wrapping himself further in to his makeshift blanket.

"Send Sticks in to the village, see what she can find out before we head in," he replied, "if it looks like you are escorting me to the castle, we should be safe."

"Why am I going ahead then?" Sticks grumbled, "just escort away."

Shadow frowned at her, "Because that wouldn't look suspicious if the King is presently in Mercia or live on TV on another continent."

She tilted her head sidways, "ah, people tend to pay attention to a kings whereabouts."

"And once we're IN the castle?" Sonic carried on, "just knock on every door until we find Amy?"

"No, you will demand she be brought to us."

Sonic pulled a face before nodding, "I'm the King, I can do that. Gotcha."

Shadow growled, "we don't know how much danger she is in. I don't know for certain she is in the Kingdom but whatever information we can get, Rob will have to give the King of Mobius. So try to pay attention to what you're doing."

Sonic did a mock royal wave, "Act smart and humble?"

"No. Lucky for you this Sonic is just as cocksure as you. But the other me is a traitor to the crown, and you must act like I am he."

Sonic smiled wide, "oh I am going to play this so well."

Before he could lose his temper, Shadow turned back to the chesnut badger, "go scout the area, see what you can find out."

"Yea yea, I know the drill," she grumbled.

"Try to keep a low profile, if that's possible."

She flipped him off as she walked away, leaving the two male hedgehogs in the chilly black of Deerwood forest. Shadow paced back and forth while Sonic sat on a fallen tree and bundled himself up. He teased Shadow mercilessly, and he had been so angry at him when he thought he had abandoned his child. Seeing the worry in his ruby eyes now however, he knew he had judged him harshly. It was out of a petty jealousy that Shadow was still close to his Amy. That even after all these years, now Amy was his wife and Mother to his child, he knew there was a part of her that would always belong to his old rival.

"What are you hoping for?" Sonic asked, breaking the lingering silence.

Shadow stood still and looked over at him, "hoping for?"

Sonic scratched his cheek "Yea, you know. Whisk the Princess to our world? Your home world? Raise the kid together as a family?"

Shadow looked at the ground and fell silent again, running his middle finger and his thumb together absent mindedly. Sonic watched the conflict of expressions cross Shadows eyes, a mix of sadness and confusion, as if for the first time he was really considering the question.

"I just want to reunite her with her...with our son. I am confident she does not wish to be parted with him."

Sonic knew he shouldn't push the matter but he carried on.

"Well there, you had a kid together! Doesn't that count for something?"

Shadow scowled at him, "We spent one night together out of impulse. She did not love me, she was is love with the Shadow of this world."

"Just like you're in love with the Amy in mine."

For a flash Shadows eyes burned with fire, but just at that moment Sticks reappeared, catching them both off guard. Her wide eyes were glistening, and she hiccuped for breath as if she were recovering from running a marathon. Sonic ran over and grabbed her shoulders.

"Sticks what happened? What's going on?"

She licked her lips several times and took gulps of air as if she was going to speak, looking between the two males as if she was scared one might launch at her.

"What happened?" Shadow barked, his stomach turning in knots.

She shook her head, "I..I didn't see anyone...bu...but there was a TV playing in a shop window."

Sonic squeezed her arms, "Gonna need a bit more than that Sticks."

She let out a long breath, the sound trembling with her struggle to hold in her tears.

"We shouldn't be here," she whimpered, "we should just go back."

Shadow roughly pushed Sonic aside and took a harsh grip on Sticks in his place.

"You will explain now!"

She did not. With a whimper the normally unmovable badger fell to her knees and began to cry. Not looking back Shadow started to run through the forest, his sense of self preservation lost in the wake of events. The voice in the back of his head tried to call to him but he ran on adrenaline and instinct. He knew what he was going to find out, he felt there was only one reason that Sticks would crumple like that, but he had to leap in to the jaws of danger to find out for sure.

With his body on high alert he stopped in time. The arrow pierced the tree beside him deeply, suddenly and silently blocking his path. Looking sideways he saw a hooded face staring at him through the darkness of the trees. By reputation alone he knew who it was.

"King Robert," Shadow called unshaken.

"Tis I," he replied, with a deep growl.

Shadow took a sharp breath, "Where is Amy?"

The jade hedgehog burst forth from his hiding place and grabbed hold of the fur on Shadows chest, pulling it toward him so they were nose to nose.

"Do not be so familiar with her you unspeakable demon," he spat, "you know where she lies. I should slay you where you stand!"

"Release him!"

They both turned to Sonic who had caught up to them. He stood at full height. Ignoring Shadows warnings that he was taller than the real King, but he kept his arms hidden under the fabric.

Rob pulled Shadow down with him as he kneeled before Sonic.

"Forgive me, your Highness," Rob snapped, "my sorrow makes a mockery of my patience."

"It's...there is nothing to forgive," Sonic said, stumbling, "please rise."

All three stood before each other as Sticks shuffled in to the centre of the group. She sniffed deeply, wiping her nose on her arm. She knew the lines she was to deliver, but the words were empty now and she breathed them as if they exhausted her.

"King Sonic has captured the traitor and ex-King, Shadow the Hedgehog. He demands...he wishes to see," she stuttered, "Lady Rose."

Rob bowed his head, "You wish to make him face up to his crimes, my King?"

Sonic nodded, before clearing his throat, "Yes, we will be taken to Lady Rose at once!"

They watched as Robert shed and silent tear before replying, "She lies in state in the Great Hall. I will see that you are given time to say farewell in private."


	13. Secrets and White Lies

_If you were looking for answers, you shall find many of them here_

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega_

 _Nula and Brant belong to me_

* * *

A barrage of threats and insults and curses followed Shadow as he was lead through the gates of Knottingham, but he didn't hear a single one. At the fall of Sticks first tear he knew that something terrible had befallen the Lady Rose, but he was not prepared for her death. In contrast to the sneers he received, Sonic was being offered condolences and flowers, which Sticks took like a waiting maid. The two of them said nothing to the crowd nor to each other as they followed Rob in to the grounds of the castle and away from the merciless masses.

The Mobians inside the castle seethed in silence as he walked by them. The sharp intakes of breath and the hisses whispered to the wind still paled in comparison to the news he had been delivered. The Mother of his child was dead. He had been too late.

The Great Hall was grand but without the glitter and gold suitable for a castle. The windows were covered with black cloth and sashes sporting a lone rose were hung from the ceiling. The chandelier was lit, casting a glow over the coffin that lay below it. It was surrounded by flowers and with some great mercy, the lid was closed.

"I am sorry I could not protect her my King," Rob whispered, his voice once again choking up, "I will catch all those responsible and put them away for the remainder of their days."

Shadow shot a glance toward Sonic, who looked too weak to portray the confusion in their minds.

"I was lead to believe," Sonic sighed heavily, "that Shadow killed her."

The blunt words seemed to hit King Robert hard and his ears fell against his head, but he did not dare speak back to 'King Sonic'.

"He is the reason that paranoia spread through my people. He is the one who gave them reason to fear him. He is the one who," Rob growled, "seduced my dear cousin and abandoned her in her months of need."

Sonic blinked slowly, "Need?"

They both stared at the turquoise hedgehog. Tears were now silently falling down his face, but the bitter scowl across his brow reflected the hatred within him.

"A child sire. She bore a son who carried the same red markings as this monster. We concealed him, telling the people the child was that of her husbands but that he had been lost in childbirth."

"Husband," Shadow breathed quietly.

"How little you care for anyone but yourself," Rob snarled, "I know not how you excaped last time but it shall not happen again. Bow Sparrow still wed my cousin knowing an illegitimate child grew inside her. Their marriage saved her from public scrutiny after rumour was already rife she was cavorting with you. I know not who took those images of you. I know not how they spread like wildfire. The people loved her but a small band of them perceived her a traitor, and it was they who slay her."

Shadows legs began to grow weak but the fire of hatred was fueled and it burned within his heart. He wished nothing more than to break his bonds and run in to the streets, finding those responsible and killing them where they stood. The Lady Rose was innocent of all crime, doing nothing but falling in love with the wrong man. It was he, himself and the ex-King, who deserved the punishment.

"The son," Sonic asked after a long pause, knowing the answer but keeping up the deceit, "where is the child."

Rob shook his head, "I know not. Amy knew as long as it marks reflected that of his Father, he would not be safe. She stole away in the dead of night and returned without him. She would not tell me where she had taken him." King Rob looked up at them again, "it broke her heart, and it broke mine. The child was an innocent and still my kin. I will find him sire, but I trust wherever he is, he is safe."

Shadow could feel the same anger burning with him begin to radiate from Sonic and was little shocked when he ordered King Robert to leave them be. Sticks had remained by the door and stood guard as they shut it behind the King, leaving the three of them with the coffin and the weight of what had happened.

Shadow approached the place where she rested, and swallowed down the bitterness he wanted to cry in to the silent air. He had never known a guilt like it before and it formed in to a salty tear in the corner of his eye. He had been so careless and he had been too slow. Was she already dead when he had been captured before? Or could he have saved her had he not run like a coward when the opportunity arose.

"What kind of world is this?" Sonic whispered, "where they would kill someone just for who they fell in love with?"

Shadow didn't respond, but he lay his hand on top of the varnished wood and closed his eyes. He could hear Sonic pacing with his own sense of outrage, muttering under his breath.

"King Shadow may have killed her," Sticks called from her spot, "maybe she knew that he might. She hid the baby, knowing that his whereabouts would die with her."

"That makes no sense," Sonic snapped, "why not come to our world and stay in our world?"

"To protect her family."

Their heads all shot in the direction of the new voice, descending from a stairwell off to the side of the hall. In the doorway stood an otter, dressed in oriental warrior clothing. There was a throwing star between her fingers, and as she ran towards them she crept low. Shadow recognised her at once as Orla, the maid who had nearly caught him in the Lady's chamber.

"We must get out of here," she told them in a low voice.

"Yea I follow every stranger that tells me that," Sonic snorted.

"I don't have time for introductions. I have to get you out of the castle before King Robert returns," she hissed impatiently.

"What is at the end of your escape plan?" Shadow asked, his voice cracking with the discomfort of speaking.

She looked at him, casting her eyes over every inch of him with suspicion.

"Answers. I know you are not the ex-King, and so do the ones I am taking you to. Too much is at stake to dawdle, please we must away now. Shed the cape!"

Shadow caught Sonics eye. There was not much they could do for the Lady Amy but seek revenge on the ex-King and the ones who murdered her in cold blood. Unable to look at the coffin any longer they hurried after the otter, who had flung back a rug and opened a trap door in the ground. They staircase was dark, lit by torches on the wall and it felt like he had stumbled in to another time, let alone another world. They entered a maze of tunnels, cold but not unwelcoming, and Shadow assumed they heralded back to the days the castle was under siege.

"What do we call you then toots?" Sticks questioned, seemingly at home in the dank blackness of the tunnels.

"I am Orla. I was Lady in Waiting to the Lady Rose. Though I believe you are aware of this?"

She directed the question at Shadow, though she did not turn to look at him.

"Lady Rose was not the only one keeping secrets it would seem," he replied.

The otter took a long breath, "Do not think my ruse means I had no affection for her. I was tasked with secretly guarding the Lady. For so many years I wished to tell her the truth but it would have destroyed her trust in me."

"Who hired you? King Robert?" asked Sonic.

"He was unaware. I was, however, trained by an old ally of the Kingdom. He had explored these tunnels many years ago, when the Eggman Empire still had control of Knottingham. In secret, he trained me to use these hidden passages to keep an eye on the whereabouts of Lady Rose, as well as have a place for the family to hide should the worst happen."

"So why is she dead?"

Shadow had no time to be coy about the question he wanted answering the most. The otter stopped in her tracks and whipped round to glare at him, open mouthed. At the pained look in her eye, he felt a small dusting of guilt scatter his heart, but it was short lived.

"We are nearly there. Lara-Su will meet you above ground and take you to a helicopter that will transport you to your destination," she looked at the cold, stone floor beneath her feet, "you will hear all you need to know once there."

* * *

Sonic couldn't help but stare at the young, female echidna, and she looked back at forth between himself and Shadow as if they were aliens. In the cockpit behind him was a young crocodile bearing a striking resemblance to Vector back in his own world. It didn't matter that he had been told this would be the case, that in this world were the counterparts of those of his own. Actually seeing them for himself was a mind boggling experience. It was too loud in the back of the helicopter to talk, and physical contact would certainly be unwelcome, but he really wished he could reach out to Shadow. If just seeing the children of his friends through Sonic in to a loop, he dare imagine how it would have been had he ever laid eyes on the Lady Rose.

He watched the world below him pass by in a blink. Forests, cities, villages, but nothing like his paradise back home. It was that he felt scared, but certainly he felt misplaced and the gravity of the situation started to overwhelm him. They started to climb higher in the sky, the crocodile behind him calling forward for permission to land in the castle grounds. Argyle, that was his name.

His world went from uncanny to unnerving as they landed. As he stepped out on to the soft grass he was aware of the figure up ahead. The King of all Mobius, stood beside a white hedgehog with striking spines. Sonic locked eyes on to the image of himself in another twenty years time and wavered. King Sonic, on the other hand, remained stone faced.

"I apologise for the rush and secrecy," King Sonic called, reaching out his hand to shake. Shadow took it with some trepidation. Sticks took hold of it and smiled broadly as if she was meeting an old friend, but Sonic simply started at the open palm as if it would steal his soul from him.

"You've never met an alternative version of yourself, have you?" King Sonic asked him, pulling his hand away.

"Not unless you count Metal," Sonic replied, "and he can't eat chili dogs so I don't."

The King smiled weakly at him, "yea, you're me. Taller perhaps."

"How did you know I was not the Shadow of this world?" Shadow asked him.

"Let's go inside," King Sonic answered, "time is still of the essence."

"How's the future Silver?" Sticks asked the white hedgehog, who had remained silently to the side.

"Getting there," he replied with an optimistic pitch.

Sonic looked at Sticks and gave her a puzzled look. She shrugged her shoulders in response.

"I told you about the war I was in. Not my fault you think I'm crazy."

* * *

"We don't have much time, so I will be brief," started the King, "we know that Brant is in your world. Shadow...ah, the Shadow of this world...he is after the child."

"Why?" Shadow cried, "he can not have a bond with him."

"No, but he does look like him, and to an extent he does share his DNA," King Sonic replied, "as you discovered with King Rob, he looks like his son."

"What does that have to do with anything? He cannot want to raise him?"

"That would not be his intention."

Sonic eyed the Queen carefully. It had driven him mad trying to place her face, and it was with a final gut wrenching realisation that the Sally of his world was the first girl he had ever slept with. Unlike these two, they had not been childhood sweethearts and there was no love involved, but at least if the Lady Amy could not be with the King it was because he was with the one he did love the most. In Sonics universe, Sally was nothing more than a one night deal.

"Pardon me asking Sal," Sticks butted in with no sense of respect for the crown, "but if you were married to evil Shadow for years, how come you didn't pop out any of his kids?"

"Sticks!" Sonic barked, but the badger carried on staring at the Queen.

"It's quite all right," Queen Sally soothed, smiling at Sonic while taking hold of her husbands hand, "the truth of the matter is that he simply can't have children. After he was tested he seemed quite shaken by the news, but I later discovered it was not out of sentimentality. He wanted an heir to make sure his line would always have power, and that it could spread across the planet."

"With Amy gone, he could claim Brant as his own and nobody would question it," King Sonic added, "legally as Amy's child he would have right to the throne of Mercia. Only, of course, with the passing of those already in line."

"That is why Amy returned," Queen Sally joined in again, "poor Orla begged her to stay away but Amy wanted to make sure our Shadow was no longer a danger. It was Orla who informed us that all was not as it seemed."

"I never embraced her in public," Shadow muttered, "this picture you say was leaked to the press., it was not me."

"It was our Shadow, and though it is not as scandalous as some would have you believe, by this point Amy was already with child and married to Bow Sparrow," the Queen sighed, "Argyle will find out the source, no doubt the last few rebels and followers of the old Kings regime. We believe Shadow himself set up the picture, planning to use it to bribe her, but then the child came along."

Shadows head was in his hands, "I should have come back sooner. I should have protected her."

"You did come back," Lara Su jumped in, "but at that time we only had half the information we do now. When Brant was born we expected the ex-King to try and get to him, thinking at the time it was his son. I was helping King Rob...it was me who froze you."

Sonic was astounded at how bright the daughter of Knuckles sounded, and to know that she was capable of powers in the same way Shadow was.

"And I'm sorry!" she carried on, "when I released you, you disappeared before we could explain anything to you."

"How did you know he was innocent?" Sonic asked.

"Silver," the King answered, indicating to the white hedgehog stood silently to the side.

Silver stepped forward and nodded quickly at them, "I am from the distant future," he declared, "and I came back to this time to stop the ex-King from getting hold of Brant and once again seizing power."

"But you were too late to..."

Silver held up his hand to stop Shadow from carrying on.

"Time travel is not an exact science, and I can only work with the information I have. In my time, Shadow is still King in Mercia, and generations of his supposed sons and daughters have waged ward on all Kingdoms across the planet."

"How do you know he is not their offspring?" Sticks chipped in.

"The medical records Queen Sally just mentioned had been hidden in unused computer systems, until the technology wizards of my Kingdom hacked in to it. In my time it is too late for them to be of much use, but I decided to come back to save Brant from Shadows clutches and stop him getting back in to power."

Sonic stood up, and swallowing his pride he placed a hand carefully on Shadows shoulder.

"We lost Lady Rose, but Brant's real Father is here and will raise the child with care and love. Brant is safely back in our world, being cared for by my wife...Amy. I don't know how the Lady got to us but..."

"It was me," Silver interjected, "I got him to your world. Lady Rose knew me and trusted me with her son, thankful that I was placing him in the arms of another Amy. Neither of us expected for her to never be reunited with him."

"But the letter, the letter suggested she was not to return."

"That was her idea, to try and stop you from looking for her. She thought, if it looked like he had been unloved, you would not try and find her and put Brant in danger."

Sonic felt his throat grow tight, and he desperately wanted to be back with his wife. He could see the regret in the faces of those around him, and Shadows shoulder underneath his hands grew tense.

"How did you get to our world?" Shadow asked, "have you the same powers as me. Or you, echidna?"

Lara-Su shook her head, "That was a bit more old fashioned."

"Star Posts," King Sonic jumped back in, "they were a long shot, and we have only decommissioned them to stop Scourge from getting back in to this world. But he..." Sonic paused, "it doesn't matter now."

"I can move silently," Silver said, hovering just above the ground to demonstrate, "and unknown in your world it didn't matter if anyone saw me."

"But Shadow, our Shadow, has vanished. If we are to freeze him again we need to track him down."

"Excuse me your Kingship," Sonic growled, loudly, "you've had us chatting all this time and there's a chance he has got in to my world? You've put my wife in danger?"

"The Star Posts are guarded!" King Sonic snapped back, but they all detected the uncertainty in his voice.

"He would have no idea which world I went to," Silver soothed, trying to calm the tension in the air, "the only way he could guess is..."

"If he met me," Shadow gasped, and without another word he grabbed hold of Sonics hand and teleported them back to their own world, leaving behind the panicked King to wonder if at any point he had made the right choices for the Lady.


	14. The Danger of Innocence

_Exactly one year ago today I posted the first chapter of the prequel story to this one, 'Internal Combustion." Here I am, a year later, jumping over the final hurdle and posting the second to last chapter._

 _Whatever point you joined this journey, whenever you joined it, thank you._

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega_

 _Brant and Nula are mine_

 _Universe B refers to the Boom Universe. Universe C is the possible future from the Archie 30 Years Later comics_

* * *

Amy had been looking at the spot where they vanished for much too long, and it was only a small cry from Brant that snapped her out of it. He so seldom made a sound, and for such a little thing it was a low, mournful noise.

Nula was presently in the air, bundled in the arms of Rouge, who, although a confident flyer, looked more than nervous with the little life in her arms. But Nula knew when to be careful and she remained still as they swooped over the village and over the amused villagers. Amy noticed with some delight that Knuckles was staring at her fondly, and she did hope Rouge might consider putting down roots with them. It would be hard to lose Shadow, but at the very least Knuckles deserved a chance at love.

"I've taken a stab at it but I don't think I can create a machine quite as effective as Eggman's."

Amy squeaked at the sudden voice as Tails appeared by her side, a small gadget in his hand. Brant made another woeful noise, and she offered up her finger for him to suck on as a comforter. One tiny little fang chewed her, but not enough to even graze her.

"What machine is that?" she asked, regaining her composure.

"Portal to another dimension," he said casually, tinkering with a few buttons as he spoke.

"I thought that was unsafe? And it wasn't Eggmans it was his fake brother, Steves."

Tails looked up at her, "Oh, no Eggman gave it a shot too. I think he was missing Lord Eggmans company. Steve isn't ageing but Eggman is, I think he wanted someone compatible. Anyway he asked me for my advise."

Amy raised an eyebrow, "He came to you? Our enemy? Eggman?"

Tails laughed, "Oh sure on paper he's our enemy, but I think the day he showed up with that talking teddy bear for Nula we knew he was no longer a threat."

Amy smiled, remembering how the bear had malfunctioned and started to parrot Sticks words at her. Of course, Sticks being Sticks had feared it was stealing her soul and she burnt it to a crisp. Poor Eggman, he claimed it was intentional, but he had seemed so upset.

"That still doesn't answer my question about it being unsafe Tails."

He continued to tinker with the device, "Shadow and Rouge can travel here safely because they have no counterparts, and Shadow said they are safe to travel to Universe C because it's an entirely different world on a different timeline. I guess...I wanted to tap in to these Universes rather than the parallel ones."

"Why?"

"Curiosity."

"I still don't think that's the safest..."

The device flew from Tails hands and impacted with a nearby tree. The impact cracked the casing off the device and the lights that were sparking to life were gone in a blink.

"Woah Tails!" Amy cried, readjusting Brant so he was leaning over her shoulder, "no need to throw your toys out the crib."

He stuttered, "I...I didn't do it! It...did it...on it's own!"

"Oh please," she sighed, turning to walk away, "don't get in a huff just because I had a good point."

"But I..."

She carried on walking away, and Brant made one last little cry before he fell asleep.

It had only been a couple of hours since they had left when the pit of Amy's stomach hit the floor. She had no idea why the wave of unease hit so hard and so fast, but when her communicator beeped for attention she found herself almost too afraid to answer.

"Hello?" she asked quietly.

"Shadow's lost his mind!" came the high pitched, metallic wail of Orbot, one of Eggmans henchmen.

"Shadow? But that's not..."

"We need medical help! The Doctor...I think he's..."

Amy screamed for Rouge, by far the quickest flier among them, and she dove in to the room with claws at the ready.

"Orbot, what happened?" Amy asked in to her communicator, indicating for Rouge to come closer and listen in.

"Eggmans attempt at a portal maker," he wailed, "it's just been sat aside, unused. But it burst to life and Shadow came out of the portal! He immediately started destroying the place and..." he paused, the sound of a metallic cough echoing through Amy's wristband, "after pulling Metal Sonic apart, he attacked the Doctor."

The two woman shared a glance.

"Where are they both now?" Rouge asked, trying to keep her voice quiet.

"Shadow vanished, he's heading towards the village. Eggman...we're trying to stop...so much blood..."

"Stay put Orbot," Amy commanded, signing off.

"That's not our Shadow," Rouge breathed, "he must have used the portal device to..."

"Take medical supplies to the Doctor now!" Amy barked, "do what you can. I'll send Tails after you with the plane so you can get Eggman to the hospital."

"Don't think you can boss me around when the children..."

"Get to the Doctor, get to that portal, stick your head in it and see if you can find my husband!" Amy screamed.

The bat flicked her ear with annoyance, but she realised the time to be polite was gone and she was perhaps the last hope of saving Eggmans life. In other Universes he was evil incarnate, but their Eggman did not deserve death.

"Brief Knuckles and get him here. I can only assume this Shadow has no good intentions, but we don't know the extent of his power. I'm going to hide the children."

Rouge nodded sharply before flying from sight. Amy ran in to Nula's bedroom, where her daughter sat patiently, her little arms wrapped around the baby protectively.

"Brant said the bad one is coming," she whimpered.

Amy's heart stopped at the fear in her child's voice, but she put a bright smile on her face as she scooped the two of them up.

"Now hush," she cooed, "we're just playing a game of hide and seek, that's all. Like you play with Daddy."

"I always hide in the Secret Place!"

The Secret Place was, in fact, a safe room that Sonic and Tails had built not long after Nula was born. Just because Eggman was no longer a threat, it did not mean they could be complacent. Their world was mostly peaceful, but Sonic was a hero for hire and there were still those who would wish him harm. They never wanted Nula to be scared of the safe space, so she was often taken to play in the Secret Place and they used it when playing hide and seek.

"Okay, well I'll tuck you and Brant away so nobody can find you," Amy beamed, "and don't come out for anyone okay? If you hear Uncle Shadows voice, he's trying to trick you in to helping him find you!"

Nula gasped, "that's cheating!"

"It is!" Amy laughed, relieved Nula seemed happier, "so don't come out until I come for you okay?"

Nula put a finger over her lips in a shush motion and Amy did the same. She didn't have to venture outside. Opening a wardrobe in her and Sonics bedroom, she unlatched a panel that led to the steps leading in to the corridor below ground. It was spacious and well lit, Tails wouldn't have it any other way, and all three slipped in to the opening with ease. Her motions woke the lights and the white corridor ahead of her shone brightly. She trotted at a steady pace, not wanting to worry her daughter further. They were under the village now as Amy pushed open another small door that led to the Secret Place.

It was a comfortable space, enough food for a week in the cupboards and equipped with monitors to the outside world. Amy set Nula down and the little lilac bundle ran for the pile of soft toys in the corner. They hadn't needed a crib recently, so Amy made a makeshift fort using a couple of blankets and pillows. As she lay Brant down she kissed his tiny forehead, and he chirruped lightly at her. She loved him more than she thought was possible, but in many ways he was already her son and protecting her offspring was there in her genetics.

"Look, Uncle Knuckles and Uncle Shadow are playing."

Amy ran to the monitors and pulled Nula away.

"Oh, yes, clever girl," Amy said, swallowing her curses, "Keep an eye on Brant for me would you sweetheart?"

With a skip she did as requested, and Amy cast her eyes back on the scene. With a jolt in her gut Amy could see that Knuckles was already heavily wounded, a deep gash across his head was bleeding in to his swollen eye. One arm fell loosely at him side, a dislocated shoulder no doubt, while the other arm he still held in from of him, fist in a ball.

Facing him down was the false King. The Shadow from another world, radiating a green aura which he used to slash invisibly at Knuckles once more. At the strike to his waist, the echidna fell, and Amy knew she couldn't sit around waiting for help to arrive. She couldn't call Rouge and Knuckles back, Sonic and Shadow were unreachable...it was up to her.

She turned off the monitors, not wanting Nula to witness anything that was about to happen. Her soul felt torn in two as she watched her daughter tickling the baby. She shouldn't leave them, every fragment of her Motherhood screamed at her not to, but she couldn't abandon the village. This fake had possibly already murdered Eggman, she would not leave Knuckles to the same fate.

"Mummy is just going to...find someone to come seek you," Amy lied, fighting back the tears as she spoke, "so you stay here, hidden. Remember what I told you?"

"Uncle Shadow is tricking me!" she giggled, "Mummy will find me."

"Good girl. Will you look after Brant for me?"

Nula nodded enthusiastically, "He knows you're good Mummy. He told me."

As she shut the door behind her she let out a sob. She had no real idea what she was about to face, but whatever happened to her the children were safe and her friends would know where to find them if she were not able to tell them. She crawled back to the opening in the cupboard, closing the doors behind her silently. The false Shadow didn't know their world or which was her home, but by the video he was in the village square and close enough for her breath to seem detectable to his ears.

She called forth her hammer. Staying low as she peaked out of windows, she needed to get out of the house and away from it so as to not arouse suspicion. The outside world was eerily quiet and she strained her ears for any sound of battle, or even better, any sign of help.

But there was only silence as she eased out the front door. Checking her surroundings she bolted for the forest close by, using the dense foliage and her knowledge to her advantage. She could creep to the edge of the village square and hopefully take false Shadow by surprise. Defeating him seemed like a long shot, but she could buy some time until Sonic and Shadow returned.

The area was deserted. There was no sign of life amongst the rubble from the hard battle Knuckles must have fought. With uncomfortable realisation she could see a pool of fresh blood, and hoping it might leave a trail to where Knuckles was, she crept out in to the light. Her senses weren't as good as Sonics, but they were alert enough and she looked around her ears twisted in all directions for signs of approaching danger.

He did surprise her, but because he didn't try to jump out or catch her off guard. The sound of a heavy door being slammed shut altered her to his presence. With an arrogance befitting his reputation, the false Shadow stepped out of City Hall. He walked at a leisurely pace towards her, smiling a wicked grin as he wiped the blood from his gloves.

"What have you done with him?" she screamed, the shock taking her brave front from her so suddenly.

"With who?" he asked with a bored sigh.

"Knuckles!" she screamed, "what have you done with him?"

He carried on walking towards her and she held her hammer across herself protectively.

"Now how do you know I have even seen that idiotic lump?"

She sucked in a deep breath and kicked herself for her stupidity. She spread her legs further apart to take a stronger stance, but words failed her.

"I like this version of you," he purred, "I can already see you have more spirit in you."

"And I see nothing but evil in you," she bit back.

"Evil?" he questioned with a heavy, low voice, "evil? How much do you even know about me to assume that I am nothing but evil? Intimate as you might be with the other me, I am a stranger."

She held her breath, "Intimate? How dare..."

"Your Shadow impregnated my Rose. She pretended he was me, and he pretended she was you. I'm as used as you are in this."

She quavered, "Don't try to make me feel pity for you. You tried to murder Eggman, and you're wiping Knuckles blood from your hands as we speak."

He looked at her with disgust, "You have no time for me yet you feel pity for Eggman? Did he not slaughter hundreds of our kind? Attempt to take over the world? Kill your parents?"

"No," she replied, holding her head a little higher and vlocking his worlds from her ears, "ours did not."

He cocked his head sideways, "Well mine did, so I guess I hold some bias towards him. Nice to know this place hasn't had to be so armed I suppose."

"Until you showed up," she spat, "we have to guard from you!"

He shook his head, "I mean your pathetic world no harm. I'm just here for my son."

She licked her lip, "I know he isn't your son, so he isn't going with you."

"He is as much mine as he is yours," he howled suddenly, "yet you are the one holding him. In saying that, if you want to play happy families, you could both come back with me. You could be a Queen you know."

"What makes you think I want that?"

He snorted, "Look around you. This backwards little place, or the world at your feet and the most powerful in the Universe by your side? My Amy very nearly took it all, but she gave it up. I offer it now to you."

Amy had begun to breath heavier, "I am not your Amy. Perhaps if you would let her in to your heart..."

"Not much chance of that," he interrupted, "she's dead."

It was a poor time to charge at him, but her legs reacted faster than her brain could. With a scream she swung her hammer at him, which he dodged with minimal effort. That feint green glow she had seen before now appeared around her hammer, and her only real weapon was wrenched from her hands. She knew the blow was coming, and deflected it as best she could, but the impact sent her in to the nearest building and she landed painfully on her side. So much to defending the village.

"I think I have more reason to be upset than you," he grumbled, frowning slightly as he walked over to her, "I did not expect her to die. Once the world saw that bastard child they would think him mine, and she would have to marry me in the name of duty and honour. Then I could have done away with the rest of the family and taken the crown once more."

"The baby will not get you a crown," she coughed, easing herself up, "why do you want him?"

He shrugged, "I will raise him as mine, and he will be King instead. The children he sires will be Kings, and I will reclaim that world from Sonic and his brats in a generation or two. Come what may I will live forever, and I will not sit idly by and watch Mobius burn itself to the ground when I can save it from itself."

She was nearly on her feet when he grabbed the front of her dress and pulled her towards him. She kicked at his torso, but found his body to be rock hard and he barely even flinched.

"The child, Miss Rose, just tell me where he is and I can be on my way and you can live your happily ever after with your goddamn blue Prince, safe in the knowledge had he not left...you'd be burying him too."


	15. Birth of the Future

_Here we are folk, the end. The conclusion of events, and hopefully the epilogue will answer the final questions._

 _It's a long one, but I hope it's worth it_

 _Sonic et al belong to Sega_

 _Nula and Brant belong to me_

 _Universe B = Boom_

 _Universe C = 30 Years Later Archie arc_

* * *

So many years ago now, during the summer that Shadow had claimed her body and nearly her heart, Amy had learned so much about the black enigma. He was incredibly powerful, and when they sparred he would strike her with force, but she knew he never attacked her with all his might. Now, as the ex-King, the Shadow from another world, wrapped his fingers around her neck she knew he did not intend to kill her. They had been fighting for a few minutes, and her wounds were various, but nothing so bad as to end her. Had she been anyone else their fate might not have been so fortunate, but his eyes could not crack through her exterior. She needed to use this to her advantage.

"Why did she die?" Amy managed to choke out, trying to pull his hand away.

His lip twitched, "because of me."

"But you," she gasped, "you did not kill her. You loved her!"

He let go suddenly and she slid back to the ground, coughing painfully and she sucked in air once more. Tears streamed from her eyes, and as he crouched beside her she couldn't help but shrink away.

"I don't appreciate your pity," he sighed lowly, "and I loved her a long time ago."

She pushed herself to make eye contact. His eyes were a much sharper red than her Shadows. They were crueller certainly, but not those of a monster, not yet anyway.

"What happened to her? She was me...I must know what happened."

Shadow took hold of her chin, lifting her face to scrutinize her.

"I still had the follower here and there. I tried to persuade her to run away with me, but by that point your Shadow had already won her. I kissed her, knowing that we were being photographed. If she came away with me, it would be destroyed. If she resisted, I would blackmail her in to being mine."

Amy felt her lip wobble, "So how is it you're here with me?"

He drew his face closer, "She was married off to a nobleman, but I knew she did not love him. Her family, their nobility, it rests on the acceptance of the people. Perhaps when they announced her pregnancy she thought it must have been her husbands. Perhaps she thought, that if I was infertile, then your Shadow would be to.

They announced to the world she lost the baby in childbirth, but rumour spread she had given birth to a hedgehog with crimson in his quills. I knew right away what your Shadow had done," he growled, "but it was the perfect chance to claim her and the throne in one swoop. Pictures of us embracing reached the press, and the truth about the baby came out."

With a trembling hand she rested her palm on his chest, and his grip on her was relinquished.

"The power of ruling a Kingdom, but also having a Queen who loved you..."

"Because the rest of the world feared me, and they believed she was to be feared for her alliance with me. They believed she was capable of killing and maiming with her basic psychokinesis, so they killed her before she could align with me and destroy them."

She threw her arms around him. He took in a sharp breath of surprise, before cursing her quietly again and demanding she not pity him.

"I'm crying for her, not you," Amy mumbled.

"Why?" he asked, as one claw snaked it's way down her side, "you could be her. Come back with me Amy, we can raise the child together, take revenge on those who killed her, overthrow King Sonic who broke her heart. Be the Queen to me, in the way Sally failed to be."

Sally. There was that name again. In the ex-Kings world, Amy had only been of use to Sonic while Sally wasn't with him. The Freedom Fighter was made useless, the girl he kept for so long on the fence was pushed aside, and the Princess took it all from her. In Amy's world, her Sonic had denied remembering Sally, but Amy knew her name all too well. She was the first girl Sonic ever slept with, a badge of honour that could never belong to Amy.

"You never loved Sally?" she asked, ignoring the gentle caress of his lips against her neck.

"Not the way I love you," he whispered, and he pressed his lips hard against hers. She tried to muffle a protest, but she was weak from fighting and from heartache, and she allowed herself to be consumed by him. She buried her hands in to the spines in the back of his head, while his rested on her lap. His kiss was strong, and her jaw already ached from the blows in their earlier fight, and she had to pull away.

"You would give me the world?" she gasped, "what do you want in return?"

He grinned at her, "the baby."

She smiled back, "oh, in that case..."

The sound he made as he twisted handfuls of his spines in opposite directions made her blood cold, but the shock gave her the opening she needed. As the back of his head connected with the ground, she flipped over him and made the short dash to where he had thrown her hammer. With it safely in her hand she ran for City Hall, hoping she would find Knuckles inside, alive. She pushed the doors shut and closed the heavy metal bolt.

She didn't see Shadow set light to the village. She didn't hear him tell the villagers to send Sonic their way when he dared to show his face. She had no idea that in his mind he would be taking her and the baby back to his world whether willingly or not.

* * *

The second they appeared back in Hedgehog Village, the smell of burning filled their nostrils and the heat was overpowering. Sonic and Shadow guarded their eyes from the smoke, trying to find it's source, but to their horror they realised half the village was alight.

"Sonic!" screamed a female voice, "get away from him!"

Staci the bandicoot came charging towards them, a heavy wrench held high in her hand as she ran towards Shadow. Sonic quickly blocked her.

"No Stace it's not what you think," he coughed, "this is our Shadow! The other Shadow, he's still here?"

She let out a small cry and threw the wrench down, "Shadow...whoever he was...he attacked Knuckles. Amy tried to fight him...but he's taken her hostage!"

Sonic grabbed hold of Staci's shoulders, "Where? Where are they? Was Nula with them?"

She coughed painfully before shaking her head violently, "I only saw Amy. She ran in to City Hall to get away, but he smashed his way in, told us he would kill her if anyone but you tried to get in. That's when he..."

"Get everyone working on fighting the fire, and tell everyone there are two Shadows so be careful who they approach" he shouted, and without question Staci ran in the direction of the confused villagers, who were all glaring at Shadow fearfully. Sonic undid his bandanna and tied it around Shadows arm, "see this bandanna, you know you're safe!"

"We have to get to her now!" Shadow said, looking toward City Hall, "I can't let him..."

"Find the kids, and then some help!" the blue hedgehog commanded, "I will rescue Amy."

"It's an obvious trap!" Shadow growled.

"I will jump head first in to it to save her," Sonic yelled again, his voice cracking, "I can't lose her. Now go find our babies!"

The desire to kill the ex-King threatened to destroy Shadow, but the children were the light of hope in their dark situation and their safety would have to be established first. There was no time to find out where Knuckles, Tails and Rouge were, so leaving behind the chaos of the fire he ran for Sonic and Amy's home.

It stood, quiet and undamaged, but he burst through the door all the same. The furniture was as it should be, and all seemed normal, but for the fallen bottle and juice cup. He picked them both up and felt a fear he had never known before. Now he knew how only death could have kept the Lady from her son. The bond was simply too strong.

"Nula?" he called, "Little shooting star, where are you?"

He listened hard but all he could pick up were the distant sounds of the villagers trying to save their own homes. The crackle of fire was growing louder, it was getting closer and if it wasn't controlled soon it would reach the Sonic homestead. For everything they had been through, the village was still ill equipped for the horrors the outside world could bring them.

"Nula, it's Uncle Shadow. I need you and Brant to come out now."

The stone cold silence bit in to him and he began a frantic search. It was quite possible the children weren't there, but he had no idea where they could be and the helplessness consumed him. He had taken in so much news and not processed it, but he was not made of stone in the way he used to be and he felt the start of a tear form in his eye. The Lady was dead, his son was missing, and the Amy he loved was in danger and he could do nothing to save her. He was on the brink of losing everything, and falling to his knees he cradled the bottle to his chest. He was failing everyone he now held dear.

There was a thud, like a door slamming against a wall, then came the scream. It was shrill, if heavily muffled, and the pitch was in line with that of a child.

"Nula!" he cried, "NULA!"

The scream continued and steadying his panic he followed the sound as best he could. Checking each room he found the cupboard door of the bedroom wide open, and with another wail louder than before he dove inside. In front of his eyes, a hidden door slid ajar and the cry of the little girl grew clearer. There was no time for hesitation as he jumped to the bottom of the steps leading down.

His feet did not touch the floor as he rocketed down the corridor to find what should have been a secure door open. A panic room, that was where Amy had hidden the children. He might never have found it without the cried guiding him. The comfortable room looked empty, until one final cry rose up from below a pile of blankets.

He pulled aside the blue fabric and found a rather desperate looking lilac little girl. Latched on to her bleeding ear was Brant, two solitary fangs buried deep in to Nula's flesh. At the sight of him Nula cried even harder, and Shadow carefully slid his finger in to his sons tight jaws, prising them apart.

"There we go," he soothed, the perplexity of what he had witnessed paling in comparison to the relief of finding both of them, safe. Nula buried her sobbing face in to the fur on his chest.

"Brant cheated, Uncle Shadow," she wept, her little body shaking with her cries.

He rubbed her back carefully, trying to inspect the damage without touching the delicate wound.

"Cheated? What did he do that for?"

"Mummy said you were seeking me so I had to hide until she finded me," she sobbed, "Mummy said no talking or Uncle Shadow will finded me. I hided and I shush but baby bit me!"

She started crying again and Shadow cast an eye over Brant. He smiled broadly, little spots of blood still on his tiny lips. Shadow wiped them away before scooping up the midnight coloured babe in his other arm. It was obvious why Amy had told Nula to stay silent, but if she hadn't screamed they might have ended up buried under a burning ruin. He couldn't spend too much time thinking over how well timed Brant's savage actions had been.

"Well, you still won the game shooting star," Shadow whispered, "I saw Brant first."

She whimpered but she pushed away from him to give him a sorrowful look. Her ear was torn badly and it would have to be sewn up quickly if it was to heal. Noticing her Fathers scarf around Shadows arm, she took hold of it and pulled it toward her cheek.

"Nula, where does the other door go?"

She pouted a little as she thought, her little eyes still streaming.

"Uncle Tails," she finally whispered.

Zooey, the fiancée, she was a nurse. He would almost certainly have the place rigged up so fire couldn't touch it, it was the haven he needed right now. With the smell of the ever approaching fire starting to filter down in to the hole he swiftly made his way down the corridor. All locked up the place was likely fireproof, but he couldn't leave them alone any more. He didn't have to run for long before he saw another door, and he apprehensively knocked it.

Zooey was there waiting, as if she had been expecting him. She snatched Nula away instantly and without a word. With Brant still cradled next to him, Shadow emerged in to a nursery. He knew they had no children and the surroundings unnerved him. His instinct was on high alert and he bundled his son in to his chest tighter.

"They're just prepared.," came a voice, "She's already pregnant. Now set him down, we have to go."

Shadow was startled by the voice of Silver, the white hedgehog he had left behind in Universe C. He hovered just above the floor, a blue aura glowing around him, emanating from marks in the palm of his hands. He was a strange one, even by their standards, but Shadow felt an inherent trust he could not explain. He looked back down at Brant, who squeaked merrily while grabbing his Fathers nose.

"In the crib," Silver said, indicating behind Shadow, "he will be safe here, I promise you. We must protect Amy and Sonic now, for the sake of their daughter."

It was hard to part from his son, but remembering the danger his friends were in he kissed Brant lightly on his forehead and settle him down, pulling a blanket up over him.

"Okay teleporter," Silver said, floating over and grabbing Shadows arm, "City Hall."

* * *

There was no fear in Sonic and he pushed open the heavy door at City Hall with no hesitation. He had faced down Metal and Shadow in the past, and just because this ex-King was cunning it did not mean he could fight as well as them. Sonic could react faster than lightning, and nothing could come his way he couldn't dodge or attack.

His confidence all but dissipated when he found Knuckles lying in a pool of blood on the floor. He dropped to his knees next to his friend. There was a deep score in the echidnas side, but Knuckles had managed to bind it with the sports tape from his arms. He was awake, and even if he was drowsy it was far better than Sonic expected.

"Plenty more where that leaked from," Knuckled coughed.

Sonic gave him a weak smile, "oh yea, big guy like you has more blood in him than a scrawny thing like me."

Knuckles grabbed hold of Sonics wrist, "He has powers we've not seen, even stronger than Shadows," he gasped, "he's waiting for you, so please be careful."

"Did you see Amy?" Sonic asked, his throat dry.

Knuckles gave him a sideways grin, "I think she has a plan, but he has hold of her."

Sonic fiddled with the communicator on Knuckles wrist and hit the silent emergency alarm. He still didn't know where Tails was, but Tails would now know where they were.

"I beat one Shadow, I can beat the other," Sonic whispered, and squeezing the echidnas mighty shoulder, he carried on silently further in to the building. Their Shadow had failed to steal Amy away from him, so there was no way this monster even stood a chance.

The explosive attack was like lightning, but his instincts kicked in. He flipped backwards as an energy beam was shot straight at his chest, but by the time it touched him in merely singed the fur on his stomach. It was pitch black ahead and he couldn't see his assailant, but the bolt had to come from there. Not one to be put off by such cowardly tactics he ran toward point the shot came from, curling up for a spin attack. He launched blindly, but he met with the familiar sensation of bouncing against another hedgehog in the middle of a spin. Landing back on his feet, he met his opponent eye to eye.

"Amy!"

She ripped off the gag that had been tied around her mouth, taking a deep gasp of air before Sonic wrapped his arms around her. She squeaked in pain as he crushed the various bumps and bruises all over her and he pulled back with an apology.

"I thought I was aiming at him!" Sonic said shaking, "did I hurt you? I could have cracked your skull"

"Oh you wish Sonic the Hedgehog," she coughed, wincing in pain at her broken rib, "just because we haven't sparred in a while it doesn't mean I don't know all your moves."

"But that blast, that wasn't you," he said as he fussed about her, checking her injuries until she slapped him away.

"No, it was that bastard setting it up so you would attack without looking. How wonderful, he knows how to fight a Sonic already."

Sonic took her face in his hands and kissed her carefully, "For a second I thought I may have lost you, but can we banter later?"

Her face froze, "the children, what about..."

"I've sent Shadow after them. We just heard the Lady...she's..."

"Dead," she jumped in, "and I think it's breaking both of them. The ex-King, he's losing his mind, he thinks I AM her. He wants to take me and Brant back to their world and help him rule it."

Sonic licked his lips, "yea well...over my dead body."

"Sonic this is no joke," she hissed, "he got here through Eggmans portal. He attacked the Doc, I sent Rouge and Tails off to help."

Sonic swallowed hard, "where is he now?"

"He passed out," she sighed, "he's been getting weaker and weaker. He caught me off guard, but I knew he wasn't going to leave without the baby. He was going to use me to barter for his whereabouts. I was hoping by the time you all got here you could take him down but..."

"But you managed it all on your own."

They were both startled by Shadows voice behind them. Amy called her hammer to hand, but just as before it was ripped from her grip.

"It's me bud, it's me," he said, holding his hands up in surrender while Silver set Amy's hammer back down on the ground. She ran to him, needing to feel her Shadow in her arms, feel the safety of his embrace and the honesty of his love for her. It would take a long time to rid herself of the vile taste of the ex-King.

"He's already collapsed, hasn't he?"

They all turned to the white hedgehog, and Amy nodded. They watched him walk in to the darkness without so much of a hesitation.

"Who is that?" she asked quietly.

"Silver. He's from one hundred and fifty years in the future in Universe C. I think," Sonic replied, twisting his head.

She shook her head, "why is he..."

"Saving the future from a tyrant and his children," Shadow replied, and Silver came back in to view. Behind him, awake but seemingly bound by Silvers psychic abilities, came the ex-King.

Power seemed to fizzle in the air as the two Shadow's met eye to eye. While Silver had hold of the ex-King, Amy and Sonic tentatively took a wrist each of their Shadow.

"I let you walk away," Shadow hissed, "and you let her die."

"You left her with a child. You stole her heart away," the ex-King replied wearily.

"I had no idea I had a son!" Shadow barked, sparks of red crackling in the air, "I wouldn't have allowed her to be murdered! Release him Silver, let us settle this now!"

"In our Universe," Silver started, "Shadows power comes from Chaos. It's a power granted to some, but only with the physical presence of the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald. The moment he came here, Shadow lost his connection and he was using up the power stored within him. He is powerless now."

"Was he not believed to be before?" Shadow snapped, pulling against Sonic and Amy, "look at the lives lost because you assumed he had no power."

Silver frowned, "That I cannot undo. You must understand the data in my time is hidden or corrupted, or the details lost as it only exists in memory and word of mouth. But Brant is no longer in danger of being raised to be a monster, and he can live with his real Father. I will take this demon back with me, and we shall imprison him once and for all. The ones who freed him are all but dispersed. The Star Posts both he and I used to get here will be destroyed."

"What if I were to try and take him off you by force?"

"I could stop you, but I don't wish to harm you," Silver sighed, "but more, I just hope you will realise that becoming what he is will achieve nothing. The Lady is lost, I feel the same pain as you, she was my friend and I cared for her. Don't let the memory of her down."

"Shadow, please," Amy croaked, "for the sake of your son, let it go."

He teleport from the scene without another word.

* * *

Amy watched the back of the ex-King disappear in to the portal. He had said nothing more to her as they all travelled to Eggmans lair. Once there, finding Eggman alive and explaining briefly the events to Rouge and Tails, they re-opened the portal and out stepped a young female echidna along with Sticks.

"Chaos Control," she spat angrily, and the emerald she held in her fist glowed. The blue aura around the ex-King was now replaced with a green one and he was frozen still.

"We will guard him better this time. I promise you all," she said with a nod. When she met Knuckles eye she jumped, but with a quick smile and a wave she vanished through the portal.

"Why did your power not burn out?" Sonic asked, turning to Silver.

"Mine isn't linked to Chaos," he said proudly, "mine is in my blood."

"I didn't see no-one like you back there," Sticks said, eyeing him up, "nor any time I've been to your world."

Silver laughed, scratching his head, "it got more powerful as the generations have gone on and couples with weak psychic powers have had kids together. I can lift virtually any weight and when I really concentrate I can read your thoughts"

"You stay out of my head!" Sticks squeaked.

Shaking his head, Silver stepped in to the portal and looked behind them.

"It takes a long time to evolve like this," he added, "my great great great Grandmother had powers, but all she could do was read tarot cards."

* * *

Nula wasn't sure where she was. She had been through the forest so many times, but never had she stumbled on the small house in the middle of a clearing. Brant gave her a playful wink as he took her hand and pulled her toward the home. She could hear a sweet, familiar voice singing from inside. All at once she was filled with warmth and love, and the haunting forest around them was nothing more than a backdrop.

"Have you always been here?" she asked.

"Since I was a baby," he replied.

"I saw you once," Nula said, "I felt like I knew you. Mom and Dad kept telling me it was just a dream, that I had only seen Shadow, but I knew they were lying."

A moment of sadness passed his indigo face, "We've been in hiding. I mean, the moment I found I could teleport Dad had no choice but to let me out now and then. See this place here," he said, indicating around them, "you can't just stumble upon this place. Only my Dads bloodline can. It's the safest place to be."

She snorted at the thought of danger like that, "Safe from who?"

He laughed too, "I don't know, they would never tell me."

"Brant? Are you back? I've told you about running off without your Fath..."

Nula gasped loudly when she saw the source of the voice. It was her Mother, but at the same time it was not at all her Mother. She was too old, but everything else about her looked exactly the same. Nula began to shake.

"What...M...Mom?"

* * *

Nula ran in to her Mothers arms, and a little stunned Amy wrapped her arms around her.

"There you are!" she cried, "Campanula I've been so worried! I've had everyone out looking for you!"

"I'm so sorry Mom, I'm so sorry," Nula wept, burying her face in her Mothers chest.

Amy beeped for Sonic on her communicator, and in a blink he was there too.

"Don't DO that to me Shooting Star," he growled angrily, but when Nula threw her arms around him too he held on to his daughter for dear life. The poor thing had no idea of the worried they still held about her safety.

"Where have you been?" he asked, pulling her away, "I almost got worried enough to call for Shadow."

"Don't be angry with her. I'm to blame."

They knew on sight who she was, and Amy fell to her knees in shock. Stood in their home, Brant by her side, was the Lady Amy Rose. Civilian clothing, humble demeanour, but it was certainly her.

"Definitely don't call Shadow," the Lady added, "he is not going to be impressed I revealed myself to you. But fourteen years hidden away seems long enough now."

"Dead," Sonic gasped, "you were dead. I saw your casket."

"You saw a casket," she soothed, "can we sit down?"

They all hesitantly seated themselves around the sofas while Amy started making a drink.

"You don't have to host me dear," the Lady said.

"I need a cup of tea," Amy said a dozen or so times, before seating herself next to her husband. Nula grasped on to her parents hands, and she watched as Brant grabbed his Mothers too.

The Lady started, "Shadow once told me that in his world he died. He didn't die of course, but the world believed he did, and with his death all the demons and stories that haunted him vanished in to the air as if they never really existed. He found this world, where he was unknown, and started a new existence in a place safe from everything that haunted him in his own life.

I was never going to be able to raise my son in peace in my own world. I knew my family would love him unconditionally, but the world around me still feared my...the ex-King so much...that Brant would never be safe. I could not wish that life on him.

Letting Silver take him away broke my heart, but he promised it would only be for a short while. He and Sonic...my Sonic, the King...they and they alone concocted the plan to have me die in that world. Poor Robert, I wish I could go back and tell him the truth."

"You still fear the ex-King," Amy sighed, "you can't go home."

The Lady nodded, "Even now I fear Brant would be a martyr. King Sonic promised to reveal to no-one the truth, and once Silver guided me to the place in the forest he returned to his time. I just had to wait for Shadow to find me."

Sonic nodded slowly, "that's why he said he didn't need any help raising the boy. I thought he was being an arrogant jerk."

The Lady laughed, "well, that and being overprotective. I wanted Brant and Nula to know each other. He has inherited my psychic ability, but with Shadows genes it is much more powerful. I told him so many times the lilac girl was just in his mind, but that didn't wash for very long."

Brant smiled at Nula, and she blushed a little, smiling sheepishly.

"I cannot go back home, but with your blessing, I want to be part of this world. The children went through so much together, they deserve a chance to be in each others lives."

Amy couldn't take her eyes of Brant. The small baby she once held in her arms was now a strong young man, and uncannily like his Father. But in their world, Shadow was a hero, even if still a stranger for the most part. There was no reason Brant couldn't be part of their lives, and she wanted nothing more than to watch him flourish and grow. She turned to Sonic, but unable to read her husband she diverted the conversation.

"Silver. What is his place in this story? How it is that he came to rescue you and stop Brant from being raised by the ex-King."

The Lady smiled, "He was protecting his own children in his own time, in his own Kingdom. Brant is his Great Great Grandfather."

* * *

Silver looked out across the sea, watching the sunset idly drop in the sky. Behind him his daughter was juggling several of her toys in the air, honing her telekinesis at such a young age. He would regale her with the stories of her ancestors in time, and about how there was once a world where she lived as a warrior princess in constant battle with her Uncles and Aunts for dominance of this world.

For now however, Silver lay back and breathed in the free air.


End file.
